The Missing Piece
by ElphieGirl85
Summary: What does life have in store for Maureen and Joanne when Maureen drops an unexpected bombshell? PostRENT. MoJo fluff. Rated T for some language and some nongraphic romantic scenes. CHAPTER 34:THE BABY IS HERE!
1. Chapter 1: The Bombshell

**This is my very, very first fan fic so I'm hoping it doesn't suck. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything. I** **RENT!! **

**Takes place a year and 2 months post-Rent, in Febuary.**

..

Chapter One

Joanne and Maureen had just finished dinner and prepared to mellow out for the evening in their small, but cozy apartment. Maureen plopped herself down on the couch, lay back against the over-sized arm, and clicked the TV to Letterman. Joanne pulled a blanket up under her arms and settled back against Maureen's chest. The TV flickered blue into the darkness as the lovers watched Dave's monologue in content and peaceful silence.

"Pookie?..." Maureen broke the silence.

"Hmm?" Joanne answered, cocking her head slightly to look back at her Honeybear

"You and I, we're pretty stable, right?

"Umm…..yeah. I mean, I guess. Wh-what do you mean, 'stable'?" Joanne asked, slightly squishing her face in confusion.

"Well…..stable. Just…..you and I….I mean, we've been together for a little over two years, right?"

"Right."

"And we've been really happy. Like, we haven't really had a knock-down, drag out, 'Screw You, I'm Leaving' fight in a long time. Like, a long, long time, right?"

"Right."

"And we're…..well, not me but you...you're making pretty decent money. I mean, we're not hurting for anything, right?"

"Right! Listen, baby, what are you getting at? I feel like I'm playing Twenty Questions here. What is up?" a slightly flustered Joanne answered as she turned to face Maureen.

"Well…..I've been thinking….."

"Oh Sweetie, what have I told you about that. You're gonna hurt yourself." Joanne teased, patting her little drama queen's hand in mock sympathy.

Maureen rolled her eyes.

"No, c'mon, seriously, Jo. I've really been thinking. I mean, things are going good for us…..great actually. I'm more in love with you today than I was when we first got together. You're career is taking off amazingly well. We're happy. We're healthy. We've got it going on…..but…."

"But what?" Joanne questioned, puzzled.

"I feel like there is something missing. Like we're this jigsaw puzzle that is all put together, but there is one piece right in the middle that's missing".

"Well, do you have any idea what this 'missing piece' might be?"

"Yeah, I think I do," Maureen replied sheepishly.

"Well?" Joanne raised her eyebrows and looking directly into Maureen's eyes, awaiting an answer.

"Pookie, I want something more than I have ever wanted anything before in my whole, entire life. I used to never think that I'd ever be able to have it, but now that I'm with you and I'm settled, I do. I really, really do." Maureen nervously fiddled with the fringe on the blanket that was now in her lap.

"Maureen, do you mean what I think you mean? Like, do you want what I think you want?"

"Joanne, I want a baby."

**TBC**

**Ok, please read and review, but be nice. Like I said, it's my first try.**

**Also, I'm wondering whether or not to have Angel be alive or to have her be gone, so please tell me what you think.**

**Thanks!!**


	2. Chapter 2: Spent

**I already have a few chapters written so I'll go ahead and post Chapter Two. This one is quite a bit longer than and first. Just hope it's not too long. Enjoy!!**

Chapter 2

Joanne was stunned, but couldn't help but crack a small grin.

"A baby? As in….like a 'baby' baby?"

Maureen bit her lip and gently shook her head 'yes'.

"Maureen, you realize this isn't like the time you wanted a hamster. I mean, you can't take a baby back to the pet store because you're tired to feeding it and cleaning up after it and stuff," Joanne said, cocking her eyebrow at her girlfriend, remembering the Harriet the Hamster fiasco from a year and a half ago.

Maureen sighed heavily and rolled her eyes.

"I know that, Dwiddle Brain. I'm being completely serious here. Joanne, I really want a baby. I want to be responsible for another person and take care of them and raise them and watch them grow, and I want to do it with you," Maureen said, taking Joanne's hands in her own.

Joanne just stared at Maureen as she poured her heart out. It was funny, but she actually believed her. Maureen had made an amazing transformation over the past year. She had grown and matured so much. Her Little Performance Artist had finally realized what it was like to make a commitment and what it meant to truly love someone. Now this is not to say that Maureen had turned into a yuppie stiff by any stretch of the imagination. She was still the same outspoken drama queen the Alphabet City had come to know and love, but she had gained a vast amount of maturity and wisdom in the last year.

The girls sat in silence for a moment. Maureen waited for a response from Joanne, while Joanne continued to ponder the magnitude of the bombshell that her girlfriend had just dropped on her.

"You're not saying anything….." Maureen lowered her voice, fearing Joanne's reaction to the new feelings she had just expressed. "Why aren't you saying anything? You're making me nervous. Please, Pookie, just say something. Oh God, you don't want a baby, do you? Oh shit, are you mad? Please don't be mad. Oh, for the love of hell, Pookie, just say something!!! You're stressin' me out!!!"

"No, no, no, baby, I'm sorry. I was just…..I'm just……..wow," Joanne said with a heavy sigh and a little laugh. "I just can't believe this. My Little Drama Queen is growing up." Joanne's lower lip puckered out. "You really want a baby? Like…..like really?"

"Really, really," Maureen grinned, "But not if you don't want to. I'll understand if you don't want to. I mean, I know we have never really talked about this and-"

"Sweetie, sweetie, sweetie," Joanne interrupted Maureen before she got too worked up, placing her index and middle finger on Maureen's lips, then moving her hand up to Maureen's cheek, "Sweetie, this is the best news you could have ever told me. A baby had always kind of been in the back of my mind, even when I was younger, but after we got together, I guess I just never thought it would ever happen. I never thought it would be something you would want to do, but yes, I would love to raise a baby with you!"

This was too much for Maureen to take. Her face crinkled, her bottom lip quivered, and her eyes became flooded with tears.

"Really?" she asked with a sniffle.

"Really, really." Joanne interlaced her fingers with Maureen's and kissed the back of her hand.

Tears streamed down both their faces. Maureen fell forward into Joanne's lap in a sob of joy and relief. Joanne leaned forward, kissing the top of Maureen's head and resting her chin on the tangled mess of brown locks that were piled there in a sloppy bun.

"Oh God, I'm so happy. And relieved," Maureen said as she lifted her head out of Joanne's lap and wiped her eyes gently to avoid smearing her mascara back to her ear. "I was so afraid that you'd think I was crazy or that you wouldn't think it was a good idea, but...yeah…..you really wanna do this?"

"Absolutely," Joanne replied, tucking a stray strand of hair behind Maureen's left ear. "Which brings me to my next point……just how would we go about doing this?" Joanne readjusted herself on the couch and covered Maureen's bare feet with the blanket. "We kinda have some options, ya know? Were you thinking about adop-"

"Weeeelll," Maureen interrupted, "I've been thinking about this too. Actually, I've always kinda thought about it and yes, you're probably going to think I'm crazy, but I wanna have a baby. I mean, I actually want to be pregnant and give birth and go through the whole thing."

Joanne looked at her girlfriend with a surprised smile.

"Really? I never would have-"

"Yes, I know, I know. You never would have imagined me as the 'maternal/pregnant/mother' type."

"Well, in all honesty, no, I never really have. How long have you felt this way?" Joanne asked, curious about this whole new part of her partner.

"Since I was little, I guess. I mean, I hide it well, but I've always kind of thought about it. It's just that…..well……I always thought I'd be a real shitty mom. Before I met you I was a broke, self-absorbed, flirtatious, performance artist living in a squat with Mark, Roger, Collins, and Benny. Not really a great place to raise a baby, ya know. But ever since I was a kid I've wanted babies. I've wanted to know what it would be like to be pregnant. To have this whole tiny little person living inside of me and to feel said little person moving and watch my belly grow. It's just always been a fantasy I've kept hidden away because, A) it totally goes against my persona, and B) I just never thought it could ever happen. I never thought I'd be at a place in my life where I could really think about it, but now that I'm with you and I'm settling down and……it…it just feels right"

Joanne sat, almost flabbergasted at this whole new side of Maureen that she never had any idea existed.

"So, you mean, you'd wanna get a donor and do the whole 'turkey baster' thing?"

"Yeah, well, kinda….." Maureen answered sheepishly, looking down at the floor.

"Kinda?" Joanne asked, very concerned with the response she had gotten. "Oh, please don't tell me you wanna try this the old fashion way with some guy because that ain't-"

"No, no, no!!! No, baby, I didn't mean it like that." The tension immediately released from Joanne's face, but Maureen could tell she was still extremely curious and that she had better explain, and fast! "I mean, yes, I'd be having artificial insemination, but it wouldn't be as simple as a turkey baster and some sperm cuz there is actually another part of my little baby fantasy." Maureen took a deep breath and cleared her throat.

"Ya see, it has always been my dream to have my lover's baby." She looked up, straight into Joanne's eyes.

Joanne, confused tried to figure out what Maureen was hinting at.

"But Sweetie, that's not-"

"Ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, don't say it's not possibly, cuz I'd hate to have to prove you wrong. It actually is possible. Ya see, instead of just inseminating me with Joe Whats-his-face's sperm…I….uh……well……if it would be ok with you…….I'd like to use your eggs so that instead of this baby just being biologically mine, it could be both of ours."

For the first time that Joanne could remember, Maureen had left her completely and utterly speechless.

The intense eye contact had gotten to Maureen and she dropped her gaze back to the blanket on her lap. It wasn't until she realized that Joanne was still staring straight into her face that she finally looked back up and saw the tears pouring from Joanne's eyes.

When their eyes met, Joanne, unable to come up with words to express how she was feeling, did the only thing she could do; she leaned forward, placed her hands on Maureen's cheeks, and kissed her more passionately than she ever had before. Maureen, not being one to turn down a passionate kiss, reciprocated the ardent lip lock.

After a few moments, Joanne pulled away, still keeping her tear soaked eyes fixated on Maureen's. Not knowing what to say, Maureen simply grinned back.

"Yu-you'd really want to do that? You'd really want to have _my_ baby?" Joanne could only just keep her composure.

"Of course, I mean, not only would you make an amazing mamma, but just look at how beautiful our baby would be." Maureen took Joanne's face into her hands, studying the amazingly beautiful physical features that their future child was sure to inherit. Joanne reached up, gently grabbing Maureen's wrists.

"God, Jo, I love you so much!" Maureen touched her forehead to Joanne's.

"I love you too!" Joanne grinned and Maureen leaned in for one more sweet little kiss.

Joanne giggled slightly and carefully wiped the tears from under her eyes.

"Oh jeez," Joanne said wearily, with a giggle still caught in her throat, noticing that Letterman was over, "Dave's over and I am spent!! Let's continue this conversation after we have gotten some rest and maybe I can stop crying, okay."

Maureen grinned back at Joanne and got to her feet, pulling the lawyer up as well.

"So, you're 'spent', huh? I guess that means you don't want to," Maureen gave two quick eyebrow lifts, "ya know….?"

"Emotionally. I'm EMOTIONALLY spent," Joanne emphasized, pulling Maureen close and running her hand down the small of her back, making her way to Maureen's cute little behind. "I didn't say anything about-" She interrupted her own sentence by leaning in and planting yet another kiss on Maureen's full lips and squeezing her ass.

"Oh, well, ga-roovy, cuz I had a little 'sumin sumin' in mind." Maureen led Joanne to their bedroom, loosening her tie as they walked. Joanne's hands had found their way to Maureen studded belt and began fiddling with the buckle.

"Ya know, this could get a lot harder to do when we have a baby around. Especially in this tiny apartment," Joanne said, pulling Maureen's belt roughly back through the belt loops and pushing her back onto the bed, then lowering herself down gently on top of her and covering her with small, sweet kisses on her neck and arms.

"Details, schmetails. We'll deal with that later." Maureen began working on the buttons of Jo's shirt. "For the time being, it's just you and me, baby."

**TBC...**


	3. Chapter 3: Joanne Takes Charge

**Thanks for the review, guys!! It's very encouraging!!**

Chapter 3

Since that fateful night 2 weeks ago, not a day went by that they didn't discuss the baby. They started immediately looking for a fertility specialist. Maureen had called several clinics in the area, but wasn't able to find any that she was comfortable with. Many didn't seem too keen on the idea of helping two lesbians have a baby together and the rejection had started to get to her.

She sat on the couch with the phonebook in her lap, the cordless phone lying next to her as the setting New York sun gleamed into the open window of the apartment, casting a glare on the TV. She had just called another clinic and though they seemed okay with the idea of helping her get pregnant with her girlfriend's baby, Maureen just didn't feel like this clinic was the right one for her and Joanne. As a single tear made its way up and over her lower lid and down the side of her face she suddenly heard a key slide into the lock and the door swing open. She quickly wiped the tear away with the back of her hand.

"Hey Honeybear," Joanne stepped in the door and tossed her keys and briefcase on the kitchen counter, "How was your day?"

"Well….it uh…..it was okay." Maureen knew that Joanne could tell she was lying out her ass.

"Oh, baby, no luck with any of the fertility specialists?" Joanne walked to the couch and gave Maureen a "hello" peck on the lips, then walked back to the kitchen to hang up her jacket. Maureen heaved herself off the couch and joined her in the kitchen.

"Eh…not really. I mean, one that I talked to today seemed okay with the idea of helping us, but I just….it…..it didn't feel right in my heart" Maureen placed her right hand over her chest.

"Well, what if I told you that I think I may have found us one?" Joanne asked, grinning slyly.

"What? What do you mean 'you found one'? When did-…..who-?"

"You remember Abby, one of the secretaries down at the office?"

"Is that the one I flirted with at your office Christmas party two Christmases ago?" Maureen asked, hopping up on one of their bar stools.

"Yes, baby, and thank you so much for bringing that up!" Maureen smiled innocently, batting her eyelashes. "But yeah, anywho, her and her husband had some fertility problems a few years back, but now they have a beautiful little boy, Ben, and I've heard Abby mention more than once how great her doctor was and…..well….I might have mentioned to her that we were looking for a specialist and she gave me the name and number of her doctor."

"And?" Maureen was slightly frustrated that Joanne had shared the fact that they were thinking about a baby with someone. Maureen wasn't usually one to be secretive about anything, but they hadn't even told their families or the Boho crew what they were thinking about yet. However, she was curious to hear about this doctor that Joanne seemed so excited about, so she kept her frustrations quiet.

"Well, I gave her office a call and she had a moment so I was able to actually talk to her. Her name is Dr. Sheryl Judd and, Baby, she's wonderful or she at least sounds that way. And I told her what we were wanting to do and she said she would be happy to have a consultation with us to see if we would be good candidates for in vitro fertilization. And Maur, she really, truly sounded genuine. It didn't sound like she was just saying that because she just wants to get money out of us. She seems to legitimately want to help us."

"Okay, so did you bring this chick's number home so I can call and schedule this consultation?" Maureen, though still a little flustered that Joanne had shared their private info with Abby, was happy that Joanne had found someone and was not only comfortable with her, but really excited about. However, she wanted to meet this chick first.

"Yeah, I do have the number, but she said that some first time patients have to wait months to get in to see her." Maureen was visibly upset by this, putting her elbows on the counter and resting her chin in her fists. "However…..," Maureen's eyes narrowed as Joanne continued, "during our conversation, she got another call so she put me on hold for a minute. When she came back she said that a couple had just made a cancellation for, get this, tomorrow morning and she'd love to squeeze us in, so I told her to put our names down and we'd be there!"

Maureen's jaw hit the floor.

"So you mean that we are going to see a fertility specialist tomorrow? It's all going to start tomorrow?"

"Yep!"

"But…Pookie…wait…I've never met this chick. What if I don't like her?" As happy as Maureen was, some doubt popped into her mind.

"Baby, trust me, from what she told me about herself, you're going to love this woman! She grew up in Alphabet City, performed beat poetry in college, played bass in a band that regulared at CBGB's, and was arrested for mooning the White House on a Senior Class trip."

"Oh, wow, that's….that's pretty cool. So, tomorrow morning, huh? Well, I'll have to try to clear my calendar," she joked. Joanne rolled her eyes.

"So what's up for dinner?"

"There's nothing in the fridge but Eggos, cream cheese, pickles, and left over veggie burgers I think we grilled last year sometime." Joanne gagged.

"I'm hungry, but damn, I'm not that hungry. I'm thinking dinner at the Life, grocery escapade at the market to follow. Whadda ya say?"

"Sounds good, I'm starving." Maureen's stomach gurgled as if to agree.

"Ok, just give me a second. I've gotta pee like a race horse with a hard on and 2 laps to go!!!" Joanne did the potty dance all the way back to bathroom.

Once Maureen heard the bathroom door shut, she flopped onto the couch with a heavy sigh, trying to take in the fact that she was going to be seeing a fertility specialist tomorrow morning. She was impressed by what Joanne said about this Dr. Judd and how excited Joanne was about this, because honestly, when does Joanne ever really get excited? But Maureen tried not to let herself get too excited. She didn't want to go in with huge expectations of this doctor, only to realize she was too good to be true, but she couldn't help but feel a peace in her heart for the first time since she looked up "fertility specialists" in the phone book two weeks ago.


	4. Chapter 4: The Drive

**Thank you to everyone who reviewed!! I appreciate it so much!! It is encouraging me to really write as best as I can.**

**Question: For some reason, when me or my friends search my pen name or story it says that no results were found. I cannot for the life of me figure out why that is. If you have any idea why this would be, then please let me know if and how I could fix it. Thanks, guys.**

**Enjoy Chapter 4!!**

Chapter 4

"Oohhhh Pookie, hurry!! Unlock the door quick, quick, quick!!! It's cold, it's cold, it's cold!!!" Maureen hopped up and down next to Joanne's silver Toyota Camry that Joanne had finally broken down and bought this past summer. Twenty-something years of hailing cabs was enough for her. Maureen impatiently flipped the handle of the locked passenger side door while Joanne unlocked her own door, got in, and reached across the seat to unlock Maureen's.

"Maur, let go of the freakin' handle, you impatient doofus," Joanne spat, slightly exasperated as she was finally able to unlock Maureen's door. Maureen quickly slid into the seat.

"Heat, heat heat!!" Maureen cranked the heater dial all the way to red as Joanne started the car.

Joanne glanced over at Maureen. "Are you going to be like this all day?" Maureen shrank back into her seat a bit.

"I'm sorry, Pookie. I'm just excited, and nervous, and scared…..AND COLD!!!" Maureen cranked the blower dial up to full blast and punched the dashboard with her gloved fist, signifying that the little Toyota was not heating up as quickly as Maureen wanted.

"Just chill, baby girl. Everything is going to be fine today!" Joanne patted her girlfriend's thigh then put the car in reverse and pulled out of the parking garage, peeking down at the directions to Dr. Judd's office that lay in her lap.

"It's just like…..wow, this is really happening. We're really doing this! It's so surreal"

"You think this is surreal, imagine what it's going to be like a few months down the road when we are in the delivery room and they hand us our baby!"

Oh jeez, I can't even think about that right now. Plus, don't say that. I don't want to jinx us. There is a chance that this may not even happen, ya know. I could have problems and they tell us it's not possible or we could be one of those couples who spend all this money on tons of procedures and still never gets pregnant, but no one can figure out why."

Joanne slowed the car to a stop as the light in front of them turned red. "Baby, don't think about that. We need a positive attitude here. Think happy thoughts. Everything is going to be fine and we're gonna be great candidates for in vitro and you're gonna get pregnant and have a great pregnancy with no morning sickness or swollen ankles or...Lord God, help us...mood swings, and give birth to a beautiful, happy, healthy, incredibly well-behaved baby, and we'll live happily ever after." She grabbed Maureen's thigh again and squeezed it gently.

"But what if we don't?"

"Ah! Positive thoughts!! Just trust me, baby. Everything is going to be fine!" Joanne did her best to convince Maureen that things would work out fine, but she had to admitt, she was pretty nervous herself, but she couldn't let her girlfriend know that.

Maureen smiled back at Joanne.

"Yeah, I know….it's just crazy. So yeah, anyway, you know the other night when we first started talking about a baby and you said that we should think about a bigger place to live?" Maureen turned the heating vent towards her and rubbed her still frigid hands together.

"Yeah, that one bedroom business is gonna have to change before we bring a baby home. We'll definitely need something bigger."

"Well, I've been thinking about that too…."

Joanne looked over at Maureen, giving her a rather surprised look. "Well, you're just a thinking fool here lately, aren't ya?" Maureen shrugged, "And just what have you been thinking?"

Maureen took a deep breathe, preparing herself to say something she had never, ever thought she'd EVER say, "I was thinking instead of just getting a bigger apartment, we could maybe get a house. And…..maybe…..instead of staying here in the city…..maybe….possibly…..we could move out a little ways…..like to maybe the suburbs…."

It took everything Joanne had to keep the little Toyota on the road. She was shocked to say the least. "Huh? You wanna what? Miss Maureen "Never Going Back To Hicksville" Johnson wants to move out of the borough and into the 'burbs?"

"I'm not saying I wanna live out in the boonies, but I think it would be kind of nice to have a little house and a back yard and a dog. I mean, I still wanna live close to the city. I love this place too much to go too far, but I really wouldn't wanna raise a baby here."

Joanne's head was spinning. "Whew….I think I need to lie down. This is a lot to take in. First, you want a baby, which is shocking enough in its own right, but now you want to trade in the trendy apartment for the little house with the picked fence and the tire swing in the back yard and the golden retriever out in the suburbs?"

"Pookie, I totally understand if you don't want to move. I know your job is in the city and your parents and all that and its ok with me if you don't wanna-"

"No, I mean…actually….that sounds really great. It would certainly take some getting used to, but it would be nice to raise a child outside the city. I could commute to work and it wouldn't break my heart to put a little bit of a cushion between us and my parents. I just never, ever….freakin' ever, thought that idea would cross your mind. You left home at 18, moved to the city, and have been here ever since." Joanne looked over her left shoulder as she merged into traffic on the highway.

"Like I said, I still love the city, and I want our baby to love the city too, but we can always come and visit. It's just a little too crazy to live here with a baby."

"Well, my credit is spectacular so it shouldn't be tough to get a nice place. I guess we'll start looking into real-estate agents. Of course we could always call Be-"

"Oh no, no….don't even say it! I will not buy my house from Mr. Allison Grey!!! It's just not going to happen. There are plenty of slimy real-estate agents in this city and I'd be willing to bend over and kiss any one of their asses than to buy a house from Benjamin Coffin III!!"

"Okay, I suppose I won't be bringing that subject up anymore. Can I have my head back please?" Maureen glared at Joanne through narrowed eyes. "We'll figure out what we want do about a house later. Right now, let's focus on getting to our appointment."

**TBC...**

**The rest of the cast is coming guys, I promise!!! Just give it time.**


	5. Chapter 5: Good, me too

Chapter 5

"What floor did you say the office was on, Jo?" Maureen asked glancing around the lobby of the medical center and finding the elevators.

"The third, I think. Let me check my directions." Joanne reached into her pocket and retrieved the neatly folded piece of paper. "Yeah….yeah, it's the third floor. Suite 327."

Maureen hit the up arrow on the elevator pad and both girls waited silently for the doors to open. _DING! _The large metal doors opened, revealing an empty elevator. Both stepped in and Joanne pushed the "3" on the key pad, trying hard not to let Maureen see how badly her hand was shaking

"Are you nervous?" Maureen asked as she felt the elevator start to rise.

"What? Me? Nervous? No…not at all….." Joanne vigorously shook her head.

"Oh, good. Me either."

After a moment of silent, blind searching, Maureen's hand found Joanne's. Almost instinctively, their fingers interlaced, and their gazes met with an anxious smile.

_DING! _The number three was highlighted above them as the doors opened and they stepped off the elevator and made their way down the hall way, glancing at the numbers on the doors, still holding hands.

323…….324……

Maureen's heart was pounding so hard that she was sure Joanne could hear it. Joanne tried to steady her still shaky hands.

…..325……326…..

Joanne could feel herself start to sweat. She only hoped she wouldn't have pit stains when she took off her coat. Maureen's stomach lurch as they neared the door at the end of the hallway.

_Suite 327_

_Sheryl Judd M.D._

_Obstetrician and Fertility Specialist_

"I uh….I think this is us," Maureen stuttered, pointing to the last door on the right. She and Joanne stood in front of the door, both taking a deep breath. "Are you nervous?"

"Huh uh. Nope. Not me," Joanne sighed, shaking her head back and fourth.

"Good. Me either." Maureen squeezed Joanne's hand one last time before reaching out for the door with her free hand. "Let's do this." Maureen twisted the knob, pulled the door open, and walked into the waiting room, almost having to pull Joanne, who was definitely in a fog.

There were two other ladies in the waiting room; one appeared to be about 4 or 5 months pregnant. Joanne smiled rather nervously at both women, but Maureen made a bee line straight for the receptionist's window. Joanne stumbled behind her.

The receptionist, a woman mostly likely in her early 50's with graying hair, looked up from the paper she was marking on and peered over the thin square rimmed glasses that rested on the tip of her nose, "Can I help you?"

"Yes, Maureen Johnson and Joanne Jefferson, here for our 9:30 appointment with Doctor……uh….Doctor….." Maureen snapped her fingers and squinted one eye, trying to recover the name. "….Ja-….John? Uh….Jacob? Jingleheimer Schmit? Fuck, what the hell is her name?"

Hearing the f-bomb fly out of Maureen's mouth suddenly shoved Joanne out of her fog. Stepping forward, she elbowed her girlfriend sharply in the ribs. "Judd. We're here to see Dr. Judd."

"Ow!!!" Maureen hollered out. Quickly realizing what she had just said she clapped her hand tightly over her mouth. "Oh Jesus, I'm sorry….that just slipped out!"

The receptionist smirked and gave an "I understand" head node, then looked down at the scheduling book in front of her. "Oh yes, you are the ones we added yesterday when the Bradys had to cancel. Yes, please, just fill out these forms and Dr. Judd will see you when she finishes with her patient," the receptionist smiled a genuine smile and handed Maureen a clip board full of forms.

"Thanks. Once again, sorry about the f-bomb," Maureen said, sheepishly, making her way back to an empty chair and sitting down, with Joanne in tow. The receptionist simply waved her hand as if to say, "Don't worry about it."

Maureen began to fill out the forms, trying to keep her trembling hands steady enough to write legibly. Joanne read over Maureen's shoulder reminding her of things she knew Maureen never remembered like her social security number and name of their insurance company.

Both girls were so engrossed in the forms that neither one of them heard the door that led back to the office open, nor the short, blonde nurse wearing Garfield scrubs, walk out.

"Maureen Johnson and Joanne Jefferson"

They jumped at the sound of their names. "Yes? Yes, that's us," Maureen said, almost dropping the ink pen on the floor.

"Sorry to startle you," the nurse apologized, covering her mouth with her hand. "Why don't you c'mon back? Dr. Judd will see you now."

As the nurse turned to walk back inside the door, Maureen and Joanne both picked up their purses, stood up, and locked unsteady hands. "Ya nervous?" Maureen whispered out of the corner of her mouth so no one else could hear.

"Uh huh….." Joanne said with her mouth agape.

"Good…….me too."

Maureen kissed the back of Joanne's hand and as Joanne returned the affection, they walked back into the office.


	6. Chapter 6: Meeting Dr Judd

**Keep the reviews coming guys!! I have up to Chapter 11 written already, but you won't see 'em unless you keep reviewing like good little boys and girls. Ha ha!! I know, I know. I'm evil!!**

**Enjoy!!!**

**Warning: There is a bit of "language" in this one so if it offends you, please read no further. You've been warned.**

Chapter 6

"Do you want some Double Mint?" Joanne fumbled through her purse, grabbing a half empty green package.

"Are you trying to tell me something?" Maureen asked, cupping her hand in front of her mouth and quickly breathing out and back in through her nose in an attempt to check her own breath.

"No, you're breath is fine, babe. I just thought it might help calm your nerves; give you something to do." Joanne pulled a foil wrapped piece from the pack then offered the pack to Maureen who shrugged as she took one as well.

The nurse in the Garfield scrubs had brought the girls back to Dr. Judd's office, taken the clip board of forms, and told them that Dr. Judd would be with them in a moment. As they waited, both Maureen and Joanne explored the room with their eyes. Unlike most doctors' offices, which are typically very formal, this one seemed very comfortable. Instead of a sterile white, the walls were painted a vibrant, yet not overwhelming, yellow. Instead of uncomfortable wooden chairs, the girls sat on a squishy leather couch. The desk in front of them was covered with photos. On the wall behind the desk hung a cork board covered in pictures of babies; mostly likely those of satisfied customers, the girls thought silently to themselves.

Joanne studied the picture of an ugly bulldog with an antler tied to his head like the dog in How the Grinch Stole Christmas that was sitting on the desk and Maureen peered at a small CD tower full of CDs back behind the desk. She could just make out some of the names; The Sex Pistols, Queen, AC/DC, Melissa Etheridge. "Niiiiice," Maureen thought to herself.

They both jumped when they heard the soft knock on the door. The door slowly opened and a tall, slender woman carrying a manila file folder, stepped in.

"Maureen and Joanne?"

"Yes," Joanne replied. Maureen simply nodded.

"I'm Dr. Judd. I'm so pleased to meet you!" she shut the door behind her and stepped toward the couch, offering her hand to Joanne.

Joanne, being polite, stood up and shook her hand. "Please to meet you. I'm Joanne. And this is my girlfriend, Maureen." She motioned to Maureen who was working on getting up herself.

"No, no, no….please sit down. No need to be formal here." Joanne and Maureen both smiled and graciously sat back down. Dr. Judd then offered her hand to Maureen with a smile. "Maureen, it's nice to meet you. Joanne told me a little about you yesterday on the phone and I understand we probably have some things in common."

"Yeah, I'm thinking we probably do." The two shook hands and Dr. Judd walked behind her desk.

"Please, sit down and get comfortable. Can I get either of you something to drink? I have coffee and I think I still have some water and Pepsi or two in the mini fridge back here," the doctor said, motioning behind her desk.

"No, thank you," Joanne said.

"No, no, I'm fine, thanks," Maureen sputtered. "You have a mini fridge back there?"

"Oh yeah! Got to have cool, liquid refreshment on hand at all times," Dr. Judd chuckled and sat down, laying the folder in front of her. Maureen and Joanne joined in her laughter.

Dr. Judd was a tall, slender woman in her late thirties. She wore silver wire-rimmed glasses that sat in front of her caring, blue eyes and had her shoulder-length, dirty blonde hair twisted up in a clip on the back of her head.

"Is that you're family?" Maureen asked, motioning to one of the framed pictures on the desk that had caught her eye more than once while they had been waiting.

"Yep, that's my crew," Dr. Judd picked up the picture and began to point, "This is my husband, Kevin. And this is Austin. He's 11. That's Maisy. She's 6. And this is my Little Bit, Peyton. She's 3, going on 30," Dr. Judd rolled her eyes as Maureen and Joanne laughed. "And this is Rux, our bulldog."

"They are beautiful!" Joanne cooed.

"Except for maybe Rux. I wouldn't exactly call slobbery jowls 'beautiful'," Maureen added. All three burst into laughter.

"Thank you and I have to agree with you about Rux," Dr. Judd tried to compose herself, "he's not beautiful, but he's a sweetheart for sure, but enough about me. I understand that you two would like to have a baby," she asked, pulling the file folder in front of her and folding her hands neatly on the desk.

"Yep, that's pretty much it," Maureen responded.

"Well, you've come to the right place, my friends, you've come to the right place. So, if I remember correctly, Joanne, you said you two have been together for a little over two years, correct?"

"Yes, it was two years back in November," Joanne answered.

"Awesome, awesome!" Dr. Judd opened the folder and began to thumb through the contents. Dr. Judd continued to inquire about both of the girls asking questions like what both did for a living, why they wanted to have a baby, and why the felt they were ready to become parents. After a while she moved on to more health related questions.

"Well, so far everything looks really good here," Dr. Judd said after 30 minutes of discussion. "I'll need to examine both of you and we'll run some blood work as well as some other tests, but as of right now things are looking bright." Maureen and Joanne beamed as they felt that a small load was lifted off of their shoulders. "Let's go ahead and get these fun examinations started. Joanne, I'm going to send you right down the hall to have some blood drawn and Maureen, you come with me and we'll get started on your examination, then when you are each done, we'll switch, okay."

"Okay, sounds good!" Joanne said

"Let's get this party started," Maureen chuckled.

Everyone stood up from their seats and made their way to the door. Upon entering the hallway, Dr. Judd pointed down the hallway to the young, blonde nurse in the Garfield scrubs. "Joanne, this is Nurse Zimmerly. She'll be doing your blood work." Nurse Zimmerly smiled as she escorted Joanne down the hall. "Maureen, you come with me," placing a hand on Maureen's shoulder and leading her in the opposite direction to an exam room. Before entering their respective rooms, Maureen and Joanne looked down the hall and smiled at one another.

Within 40 minutes, both girls had had blood drawn and been examined by Dr. Judd and were back in her office, sitting exactly how they had before.

"We need to get all your test results back before I can say for sure, but guys, everything looks great so far! I'll be in touch when all your test results come back and we'll get you back in the office to discuss them and take it from there, alrighty?"

"Okay, sounds great!" Maureen grinned and all three women stood up to leave.

Joanne stretched her arm across the desk to Dr. Judd. "Thank you so much for your time today."

"Oh, it was certainly my pleasure," Judd smiled, shaking Joanne's hand as Maureen offered her hand next.

"Yes, we are just so fuuuuu….," Joanne quickly shot Maureen 'the look' as Maureen realized what was about to escape from her mouth, "uuuu-reaking……happy that you could see us and all." Joanne sighed with relief and rolled her eyes as Maureen smiled at her quick save.

Dr. Judd chuckled. "You and I are definitely going to have to hang out sometime. I think we are really fucking similar, you and I," Dr. Judd said grinning back at Maureen and shaking her outstretched hand. Both Maureen and Joanne's eyes became as big as silver dollars and the room was silent for a moment. Sly smirks then developed on all three of their faces and they burst into a fit of giggles.

"Hell yes, we are going to have to hang out!" Maureen squawked, a little louder than Joanne would have liked.

"I'll be in touch, ladies."

"Great. Thank you," both replied in unison as Joanne opened the door and they stepped back out into the hallway. Once the door was shut behind them, they exchanged a smile, locked hands again, and made their way back out into the waiting room and out the door.


	7. Chapter 7: Your timing really sucks

**Thanks for the reviews!! Keep 'em coming!! **

**Big Warning: This chapter contains nudity, Maureen potty mouth, and some steamy romance. It's nothing graphic, but I would rate this particular chapter M so you have been warned.**

Chapter 7

Maureen had been waiting anxiously by the phone most of the day, awaiting a phone call from the doctor's office. At 4:55, she couldn't wait any longer. She had to get in the shower and get ready before Joanne got home. They were supposed to meet up with the Boho crew later on that evening. Maureen had just put a dripping wet foot on the bath mat when…..

_RING…… RING……_

"SHITDAMNHELLPISS!! I knew it!! They couldn't call when I was sitting next to the phone for 8 straight hours!! Nooooo….had to wait til I was in the shower!! Bastards…"

_RING……RING……_

"Oh, hold on!! I'm coming!! I'm coming!! Oh fuck, please don't hang up!" Maureen made a half-hearted attempt to dry off.

_RING……Hi, you've reached Maureen and Joanne. You know what to do, and you know when to do it, so when it does it, do it. Thanks! BEEP!!!!_

Maureen flung the bathroom door open just as the answering machine picked up. Without even thinking to grab a towel she ran, buck naked through the loft, making a mad dash to the phone. "Oh shit! Oh shit! Oh shit! Oh shit!" she almost sang to herself, tip-toeing across the hardwood floor and trying not to bust her ass, leaving a trail of water behind her.

"Hi, Maureen and Joanne, this is Nurse Zimmerly from Dr. Judd's office. I was just calling to inform you-"

"HELLO!! HELLO!! I'M HERE!!! Don't hang up! I got it!!" Maureen panted, out of breath. "I'm so sorry……(pant)…..I took 15 minutes to….uh…(pant)…..grab a…uh….shower….and….(pant) ….uh…yeah,you're timing really sucks!!!"

"I'm so sorry. Is this Maureen?"

"Yes," Maureen was able to somewhat catch her breath, "this is she."

"This is Nurse Zimmerly from Dr. Judd's office. I don't know if you caught that part or not."

"Yeah, yeah, I caught that part. And you were calling to inform me….?" Maureen let the end of the sentence dangle, waiting for the nurse to continue where she had left off on the answering machine.

"Yes, I was calling to inform you that both yours and Joanne's test results came back looking great and Dr. Judd would like to make an appointment to start planning your fertility treatment and in vitro."

"Oh, wow! No shit? Everything looks good? Wow, that's…..that's awesome!! Oh my God, that's so fuuu-stinking awesome!!" Maureen smiled at yet another quick save. "I'm getting good at this," she thought to herself. She could hear the nurse chuckle a little into the phone.

"Yes! It's wonderful!!" the nurse agreed.

"Okay….okay….," Maureen attempted to compose herself. "So….so an appointment, huh? Okay, what do you guys have available?"

"Well, we have an appointment right after lunch at 1:30 on Monday (it was currently Thursday). Will that work out for you and Joanne?" the nurse asked.

"Um," Maureen tried to think, "Yeah! Yeah, that should be fine. I'll talk to Joanne. She's actually due home pretty soon, but yeah, that should be fine. Put us down for Monday at 1:30." Maureen, knowing that in her excitement, there was a good chance that she would forget the time and date, reached for a pen. Since there was no paper in sight, she attempted to write on her hand, but the ink would not stick to her still damp skin. In a moment of desperation, she grabbed a black Sharpie and wrote the date and time on her thigh.

"Okay, so Maureen Johnson and Joanne Jefferson, 1:30 PM, Monday," the nurse spoke as she wrote the information down in the schedule book. "Alrighty, we'll see you and Joanne on Monday then."

"Monday at 1:30. We'll be there! Thank you."

"Bye, Maureen."

"Bye."

Maureen hit the "END" button on the phone and laid it on the couch next to her. She sat in a daze for a moment.

"Oh my gosh. This is really happening. This is so crazy!! Next week we will be discussing my fertility treatment. My fertility treatment…….my fertility treatment," Maureen kept repeating the phrase to herself, but the words still sounded foreign in her mouth. She was so absorbed in her thoughts that she didn't even hear the key slide into the lock and the door swing open.

"Hi, Honey," Joanne stepped in the apartment, arms full of bags from the supermarket. "I picked up some gro...cer….ies…….." The bags dropped on the floor and spilled out everywhere as Joanne stared in utter shock at her girlfriend sitting buck naked and soaking wet on their couch.

Maureen, who was still in a bit of a daze and apparently unaware of the fact that she was still naked as a jaybird, looked up at Joanne. "Oh…hi baby! How was work? Oh my God, you're not going to believe the phone call I just got!" Joanne just stood there, staring blankly back at her, not knowing what to make of this. "What's the matter, Pookie? Why are you looking at me like that?"

"Maureen…..Honey…….you are sitting ass-naked and soaking wet in the middle of our living room and YOU are asking ME why I'm looking at you like this???" Joanne still hadn't moved from her spot in the door frame.

Maureen, still a little out of it, glanced down at herself. "OH! Jesus!! I forgot about that!!" Maureen hurriedly threw her arms over her chest in an attempt to cover her state of undress, but a seductive smile had begun to creep across the face of Joanne, who was still standing wide-eyed in the doorway with the door standing wide open and groceries still rolling on the floor.

"Sweetie…Pookie…..Sunshine of my Life," Maureen said through clenched teeth, "Would it be too much to ask for you to CLOSE THE MOTHER-TRUCKIN' DOOR?!?! I really don't want the whole apartment complex seeing my pasty white, star spangled derriere." Joanne shook herself out of her fog.

"Whoops, sorry, baby!" Joanne turned and shut the door, but spun immediately back to look at her girlfriend. "Uh….so yeah…..umm….how….uh….." Joanne struggled for words, "….why are you sitting ass-naked in the middle of the living room? I mean, I'm not complaining or nothing, but…." Joanne's words trailed off as she looked Maureen up and down.

"Well, I had been waiting all day for the doctor's office to call, but they never did and when they finally did I was in the shower and-"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Joanne began to make her way towards the couch, forgetting momentarily that Maureen was still nude, "The doctor's office called? Did they have our test results? Is everything thing okay? What's the story?" Joanne sat down next to Maureen on the couch and became immediately aware of the fact that she was sitting a puddle of water, but that wasn't on her list of priorities to deal with at the moment.

"Baby," Maureen scooted closer to Joanne, "our test results came back great! We have an appointment at 1:30 Monday afternoon to discuss our fertility treatment!" Her voice got higher and higher as she neared the end of her sentence.

Joanne's mouth dropped open. "Really? So….so this is it? We're really on our way now? We're really doing this?" She put her hands on Maureen's still bare shoulders.

"I think so!" Maureen almost squealed, making frantic little claps with her hands. Joanne, who was still holding Maureen's shoulders, pulled her in and kissed her, moving her hands up to Maureen's face.

"I say we celebrate!" Maureen stated after pulling away from the kiss. "Tonight at The Life I say we tell the crew and maybe indulge in an adult beverage or two!!"

"Sounds great! I've been dying to tell them for the past two weeks!"

"Speaking of which, I probably need to go get ready. I still need to…well….dry off and put some clothes on and dry my hair and put on some-" Joanne interrupted Maureen with a kiss as she moved her hands down Maureen's still bare body.

"Huh uh…..the LAST thing you are doing right now is putting clothes on." Joanne hissed, pulling the diva closer and running her hand up her thigh, not even noticing the 'Monday 1:30' that was scribbled across it in black Sharpie.

Maureen just stared back at Joanne. Joanne very rarely acted this way. Actually, Maureen had never really seen Joanne act this way. Usually, she was the one to initiate the sex because usually it was all she could ever think about for longer than 7 seconds.

"Pookie, are you serious? You really wa-a-a-anna…." Maureen trailed off, gasping as Joanne began to kiss behind her ears, moving down her neck to her shoulders and chest. "We'll be la-AAAAte," Maureen shuddered, her breathing become more sporadic.

"Then we'll…..just have….to….be late" Joanne said in between kisses. I need some time with my future baby mamma." Maureen giggled slightly at this comment. "Did you leave any hot water?"

"Yeah, plenty. I jumped in and jumped ooOOOut" Maureen trembled as Joanne reached her hand up the inside of Maureen's thigh. "It was a quickie."

"Well, what do you say to a 'quickie' of our own right now?" Joanne stood up and gently pulled Maureen up off the couch by her wrists, looking her up and down, admiring her breath taking body then led her towards the bathroom.

"Reheheheheaaaalllyy?" Maureen was intrigued. She leaned in for a passionate lip lock and began to unbutton Joanne's vest and unlatch her belt, her lips never leaving Joanne's as they entered the still steamy bathroom. Maureen broke the kiss and the disrobing of her girlfriend just long enough to reach behind the shower curtain and turn on the water as Joanne shut the door behind them.

**TBC...**


	8. Chapter 8: Telling the Bohos

**Since it is Saturday and I'm feeling generous, I'll let you guys have two chapters today.**

**For your reading pleasure, I present to you: Chapter 8!! And in this one we finally see the rest of the Bohos!!! Yay!!!**

**Don't forget to review!!**

Chapter 8

Maureen and Joanne briskly made their way down the side walk, A) because it was cold and B) because they were late. They were supposed to be at the Life at 6:00 to meet the crew and it was now 6:17 on the button and they still had a block to go.

All the Bohos were already seating in the café at the tables they had pushed together.

"Where the hell are Maureen and Joanne?" Mark asked no one in particular. "It's not like them to be late. Well, it is for Maureen, but not when Jo's with her."

The Bohemians began looking at their watches or the clock on the wall, then glanced out the frosty window pane of the café.

"You don't think something happened, do you?" Mimi asked, looking around the table in concern.

"For the love of Pete, Paul, and Mary, they are 15 minutes late. Let's wait at least 30 before we started having a thermo nuclear meltdown, Meems." Mimi glared over at Collins before turning to Angel.

"You better keep that boy of yours under control, sista!" Mimi said to Angel while she shook her finger at Collins.

"Oh baby, Lord knows I've tried. He cannot be controlled," Angel shrugged, "that's an anarchist for ya."

"Well, I was just being concerned about my girls. Like Mark said, it's not typical for them to be late like this when Joanne is around. And for your information, they are 17 minutes and…." Mimi grabbed Roger's wrist to look at his watch, "49 seconds late, so there!" Mimi stuck her tongue out at Collins who retaliated by licking his finger and sticking it directly in her ear.

"Oh, you nasty!!" Mimi shouted, trying to get the Collins saliva out of her ear drum.

Roger put his arm around Mimi. "I'm sure their fine, babe. You know how Maureen can be sometimes. She has to change outfits 14 times before she can go anywhere."

About that time, Joanne and Maureen appeared at the door of the café. The trudged in place for a minute on the rug trying to dry off their shoes, shook off the cold, and moved towards the Boho table.

"There you are! We were starting to get worried!" Mimi said, jumping up from her chair to welcome the girls.

"Hey, yeah…..sorry we're late, we uh……lost track of time" Maureen said, glancing over at Joanne. Both were trying to suppress grins.

"Yep…..just lost track of time," Joanne agreed.

The rest of the table exchanged glances of their own.

"Lost track of time?" Collins questioned. "Joanne Jefferson does not lose track of time. Joanne Jefferson is always a minimum of 10 minutes early. Maureen Johnson loves to be fashionable late, but Joanne Jefferson will have none of that!" The table watched the girls as they removed their coats and scarves, awaiting a response.

"No really. We were just hanging out at the apartment and all of a sudden it was 6:00," Joanne tried to cover.

"BULLSHIT!" everyone said it unison.

"Wait a minute," Mark said, squinting all four of his eyes at Maureen, studying her face. "I…..I know that look….."

"What look? What are you talking about? I don't have a look!" Maureen retorted defensively.

"Oh no, you definitely have a look and I know that look! I have seen that look, many times actually." The whole table was silent, waiting for Mark to spill what he knew. Mark stood up, ran around to the other side of the table and showed off Maureen's face much like one of Barker's Beauties would show off a coffee maker on The Price Is Right. "What we are looking at is none other the famous Maureen Johnson 'I Just Got Some Booty" look!!! I'd know it anywhere!!"

Maureen and Joanne's eyes became as big as the plates that were sitting on the table and the Bohemians burst into a fit of laughter.

'Oh my God, he's right!!" Roger exclaimed. "I remember that look from when you two," he pointed to Maureen and Mark, "used to sneak off to 'talk'." He made the quote sign with his fingers. "Remember, Collins?"

Maureen reached across the table to smack Roger in the head, but missed.

"Did you chicas take a little ride on the Love Train before you got here?" Angel said, slapping Joanne on the butt.

"I don't know what you're talking about!" Joanne stated plainly, trying to compose herself and praying that her caramel skin was dark enough so everyone wouldn't see that she was blushing.

"Whatever!! You guys totally did it!!" Mimi hollered. "Didn't you?"

"Weeeellllll……. we may have had a little quickie in the shower……" Maureen confessed. Joanne covered her face in shame. A bombardment of cat calls and 'go girl's erupted from the table. 'But we had good reason!! We were kind of celebrating…."

"Since when do you need a good reason?" Roger asked. However, everyone rolled their eyes and ignored him.

"Celebrating what?" Angel asked.

"Well, everyone sit down and shut the hell up for a sec and we'll tell you." Maureen spat.

Mark and Mimi made their way back around the table and took the seats on either side of Roger and everyone turned to face Maureen and Joanne who were now standing at the head of the table. The girls exchanged glances at each other and Joanne nudged Maureen, signaling her to tell everyone their news. Maureen reached down and took Joanne's hand, took a deep breath, and began.

"Well, Joanne and I have some news. Some pretty major news actually, which if all goes according to plan, will only get bigger and better in the coming weeks and months." Mark, Roger, Angel, Collins, and Mimi all shared rather puzzled looks, trying to figure out what Maureen meant. "We are, as of right now, in the beginning stages of planning our fertility treatment." Everyone's eyes grew wide. "We are going to try to have a baby!" Maureen finally exclaimed.

Everyone sat in stunned silence for a moment, much like Joanne had when Maureen dropped her bombshell. Collins was the first to break the silence.

"Are you guys serious? That's amazing! I'm so happy for you!" He stood up and made his way over to the girls, kissing Joanne on the cheek and hugging her, then moving on to Maureen, the girl who had been much like a sister to him since high school. He took her into a tight embrace and lifted her up off her feet. "This is so cool," he whispered into her ear.

The rest of the crew joined in the hugging, kissing, and congratulating once they had picked their jaws up off the floor.

"So you guys are really gonna do this?" Mark asked when the roar began to dull.

"Yeah, we've already seen a fertility specialist and we have an appointment next Monday to discuss our treatment plan," Joanne finally chimed in as everyone began to sit back down.

"Ok, first of all this is great! I'm really excited for you," Roger said, "and second, I might be a complete moron for asking this and if I am, please, just say so, but exactly how is this going to work? Like…how….???" Roger gave a look as though he was about to hurt himself from thinking too hard. His puzzled look then spread around the table.

"Well, we are actually going to do in vitro fertilization." Maureen answered.

"Is that where they take the turkey baster and-"

"Yes!" everyone said in unison, cutting off poor Roger.

"So Joanne, are you actually going to be pregnant and all that?" Mimi asked.

"Well, actually, Maureen is," Joanne answered.

"No way! Our Little Drama Queen is going to get knocked up?" Mark asked, astounded.

"Is that really so hard to believe?" Maureen raised her eyebrows and put her hands on her hips.

"No, Honey, I think it's just hard for us to picture you with a pregnant belly and all that." Angel said, patting Maureen's flat tummy.

"Of course, I'm not going to be the only one involved here. We are actually going to use some of Joanne's eggs so it will actually be her baby biologically."

"No kidding? They can do that?" Roger was astonished.

"Yeah, they just retrieve some eggs from-" Joanne began to explain.

"Eh, let's wait until after dinner to travel down that particular road." Collins interrupted, wanting to be able to enjoy his meatless balls without thinking about Joanne's eggs.

"What about a…..uh….ya know…..a….how would you say….'donor'? Mark asked squirting ketchup on his tofu dog.

Maureen and Joanne looked at one another, "Well, honestly, we haven't really discussed that in depth yet. I guess we'll use a sperm bank," Joanne answered as she signaled to the waiter that she and Maureen would have their usual, seaweed salad for Maureen and miso soup for Joanne with two mugs of beer.

"Well, you guys know I could always help you out" Roger said in a "tough guy" voice, stretching his arms along the backs of Mimi's and Mark's chairs and leaning on the two back legs of his chair. Collins saw the perfect opportunity, reaching under the table with his foot he kicked Roger's feet out from under him. Roger's arms flailed wildly as he fell backwards and hit the ground with a crash.

"Yeah Rog, you're at the top of our list," Maureen giggled sarcastically, giving a thumbs up. Roger got to his feet as quickly as he could and set his chair back up.

"I'm okay. I'm okay," he popped the collar of his leather jacket and looked around to see what other people in the café had seen him fall and then slid smoothly back into his seat.

"Well, I think this is awesome!! I always thought you two would make pretty babies!! I can't wait!!" Angel declared.

'Oh! By the way, did we also mention that we are thinking of getting a house in the suburbs if we get pregnant?" Maureen blurted out.

"When, baby...when we get pregnant," Joanne corrected, but Maureen's choice of grammar was not what the rest of the group was focusing on.

"You want to move out of the city?" Mark asked, leaning in closer.

"Yeah, and be a…..a……a suburbanite?" Roger could hardly picture such a thing.

"We wouldn't be going that far. Just a little outside the city where it's a little quieter," Maureen assured them.

"We'll still be close and we'll visit all the time and you guys can come and visit us. We're not planning on moving half-way across the country or nothing; just where we can raise a baby without the craziness of the Alphabet City." Joanne chimed in.

"You promise you'll come and visit?" Mimi asked.

"We promise, Meems. Gosh, you guys don't think I'd ditch you and my lovely NYC, do ya? We'll be half an hour away. Maybe not even that far! Just right outside the city. And we haven't even started looking yet. It's just something we've talked about a little. You guys will all have plenty of time to warm up to the idea," Maureen reassured.

"Well, I think this is great. I want to raise a toast," Collins announced, standing and grabbing his fresh mug of beer and raising it above his head. The rest of the table as well as others in the café who had overheard the conversation followed, lifting their drink of choice into the air. "To Joanne and Maureen, may they get all they ever wanted and get paid back for everything they ever did to their parents!!

"Here, here!!" everyone cheered, clinking their glasses together before throwing back the contents. The celebration lasted long into the night. The poor waiter soon learned to just keep a steady stream of wine and beer flowing to the Boho table.

"This may be the last time I get to do this for a while," Maureen thought as she threw back the last swig of her fourth beer and watched Mimi and Angel chug an Irish Car Bomb. "Actually, this could be the last night I'll ever be able to get really sloshed with my friends, and not have to worry about taking care of a hangover and a kid at the same time the next morning." However, she was strangely at peace with it. She smiled as she thought about all the many endless nights of craziness and fun she had had with the Bohemians, but it was time to experience some of the other joys in life. She couldn't wait to see how a baby would change, not just her life, but the lives of the people she cared so much for as well.

**TBC...**


	9. Chapter 9: This is not fun

**Apparently I didn't get a chance to proof read chapter 7 and 8 very carefully so I went back last night and fixed some mistakes. Here is Chapter 9. I'm hoping to have Chapter 10 up tomorrow, but I'll be pretty busy so I'm not making any promises so you may have to enjoy this one for a few days.**

Chapter 9

"Honeybear, it's time for 'you know what'!" Joanne called from the bathroom.

"Aaaawwww!!" Maureen groaned into the arm of the sofa where she was sprawled out watching the Simpsons. "I really do hate this. You do know that, right?" She pushed herself up off the couch and dragged herself into the bathroom where Joanne was sitting on the lid of the toilet seat, filling the syringe.

"Yes, I know. You tell me every time. We've been doing this two times a day for a week. You'd think you'd be used to this by now. I am." Joanne flicked the syringe, trying to get any air bubbles left to rise to the surface.

"You'd think," Maureen cried throwing her hands in the air, "but you're are all brave and shit when it comes to needles and I'm….."

"Chicken?" Joanne offered.

"Exactly! I'm chicken and, hell, you give them to yourself!" Maureen motioned to herself and then back to Joanne who was still making tiny adjustments with the liquid in the syringe.

"Just think of it as being half-way done!" Maureen rolled her eyes as her girlfriend tried to make her feel better. "Come on, baby. You know we have to do this. I know you hate it, but if we want this to work we have to stick with the fertility drugs."

"I may have to do it, but I don't have to like it!" Maureen protested, crossing her arms across her chest.

Joanne put the cap back on the needle and laid the syringe down to grab an alcohol swab out of the cabinet under the sink. "Alright, sister, drop 'em," she said ripping open the swab.

"Awwww……" Maureen groaned again as she undid the draw string on her flannel pajama bottoms and pulled them down just below her butt. Joanne swabbed a tiny area on Maureen's right cheek and grabbed a handful. Usually, this would excite Maureen, but not when Joanne had a syringe in her other hand.

"Okay, I'm gonna go fast, I promise!" Joanne took the cap off the needle with her teeth as she reassured Maureen. "Find your happy place and try to relax."

Maureen grimaced and braced herself against the sink. "Find my happy place, find my happy place, find my happy pu-LACE!!!!!"

Joanne quickly stuck Maureen, depressed the plunger, and pulled the needle back out in one swift motion. "Done!" Joanne announced, throwing her hands up into the air.

"Yeah, until tomorrow morning when you have to do it again," Maureen groaned, rubbing her sore butt cheek. "Let's try the left one next time. Rightie's getting sore."

"Oh c'mon, Punkin'. You have got to admit I'm getting pretty good at this. Remember how long it took the first time?" Joanne replaced the cap on the syringe and threw it in a plastic box Dr. Judd had given them marked "Bio Hazard".

"How could I forget? You let go and left the syringe sticking out of my ass!!" Maureen pulled up her pants as Joanne just smiled, innocently batting her big brown eyes.

"I said I was sawee," Joanne pitifully cried, sticking out her bottom lip. She then reached for a new syringe.

Two weeks before, Maureen and Joanne had returned to Dr. Judd's office to start discussing their plan for fertility treatment. Dr. Judd started both the girls on fertility drugs to ensure that Joanne would produce more eggs so they could retrieve them and that Maureen would have a better chance of getting pregnant.

Dr. Judd had insisted that the girls learn to give their shots since they would have to take an injection 2 times a day for 2 weeks and coming into the office that much would be nearly impossible. Joanne volunteered to learn since Maureen was creeped out by even the sight of a needle. Joanne not only learned how to give Maureen's shots, but she also learned how to give her own shots since Maureen refused.

"I still cannot believe you actually do this to yourself!" Maureen squirmed as she sat down on the edge of the bathtub and watched Joanne fill a new syringe with fluid.

"If I weren't here and you really had to, you could too. I know how badly you want a baby. You'd do it if it really came down to it." Joanne held the syringe at eye level, making sure she had filled it accurately, then flicked it like she had done with Maureen's dose. "Grab me a swab out of the cabinet."

Maureen reached into the cabinet under the sink and retrieved an alcohol swab. She ripped it open as Joanne pulled the right leg of her pajama shorts up to her thigh where she was forced to stick herself since she could not reach her own butt.

"You really think I could? Give myself an injection, I mean" Maureen asked handing the alcohol swab to Joanne.

"Of course! You are Maureen 'Kiss My Star Spangled Ass" Johnson. If someone told you that you couldn't do it, you'd do it in a heart beat. You can do anything you set your mind to, baby." Maureen beamed a little as Joanne swabbed an area on the side of her thigh.

After taking a deep breath and letting it back out slowly, Joanne stuck herself with one smooth motion. "All done. Quick and relatively painless." She disposed of the used needle and stood up.

"Speak for yourself," Maureen grumbled, still sitting on the side of the tub. "Not only do I have to get stuck 2 times a day for two weeks, but since we started this stuff, my head has yet to quit pounding." Joanne gently placed her index and middle fingers on Maureen's aching temples and rubbed them tenderly. Maureen closed her eyes, trying to relax.

"Dr. Judd said that could be a side-effect, but just remember; we're half-way done. One more week then no more injections. Hang tough, baby. Look at the big picture. What are we doing all this for?"

Maureen smiled at the thought. "Our baby." She tried to imagine what he or she would look like, just as she had done countless times before.

"No one said this was going to be easy, but it's going to be worth it, right?"

"More than worth it……but right now, it sucks…" Maureen became weepy, leaning forward and resting her throbbing head on Joanne stomach. Mood swings were also a side-effect of the fertility drugs and Joanne knew this. She had experienced a tizzy or two herself over the past week. She simply held Maureen until she was through and gently wiped away her tears.

"We're gonna get through this, baby. We are," she assured. "Come on, we need to go look at the files the sperm bank gave us. We have a little over a week to decide who will be the father of our child and that's not really something I want to be doing at the last minute, you know?" Joanne tried to lighten the mood.

"Oh, I don't know. I was actually thinking of just spreading the files on the coffee table, closing my eyes, and 'eeny meeny miny mo'ing it," Maureen joked as she wiped her eyes with the sleeve of her nightshirt.

Joanne giggled slightly, pulling Maureen to her feet. "I'm thinking…….no. C'mon. Let's check out a few before we hit the sheets."

Maureen stood up and stepped close to Joanne, wrapping her arms around her waist and gently pressing their foreheads together. "Do you have any idea how much I love you?"

"I'm not exactly sure, but it's not nearly as much as I love you," Joanne smiled. Maureen pulled her closer and pooched out her lips so that they just barely caressed Joanne's.

"If my head were not pounding and we not be on a deadline to choose a father for our child, I'd argue that point with you, but it's going to have to be on the bottom of my list of priorities. You win this one."

"You've made a wise choice, my friend," Joanne said placing her hands on Maureen's cheeks, tilting her head down to kiss her forehead, "Now, let's see if we can continue with the wise decision making and find a father for our baby."


	10. Chapter 10: 8512

**Sorry guys, I had to work yesterday and wasn't able to post anything, but here you go! Chaper 10! And if I get some reviews, I might think about posting another chaper tonight.**

Chapter 10

After two weeks of nausea, headaches, and extreme emotional sensitivity, it was safe to say that both Maureen and Joanne were ready to be done with the twice-a-day injections. Now they were each on a different medication that they took orally, though neither one of them knew quite what it was for. They had one more week before their scheduled in virto fertilization procedures, but had to have their "donor" from the sperm bank chosen by the next day since they had to do something to it before the actual procedure. Neither of the girls remembered what that was either. All they knew was that they had one more night to make what was probably going to be the biggest decision of their lives.

"Ok, so let me get this straight. They give you these files of guys who have….uh….'donated' and you just choose the guy you want?" Mimi asked thumbing through the folder as Angel looked over her shoulder. Collins, Mark, and Roger sat on the bar stools enjoying a beer. The Boho crew was over at the Johnson-Jefferson household for dinner and a movie and had become quite intrigued by the whole situation.

"Yeah, that's pretty much it," Joanne said, stirring the alfredo sauce for their pasta.

Maureen was setting the dinning room table. "We told them we wanted someone between the ages of 25 and 35, who had an artistic background…"

"And a college degree," Joanne added.

"They give us a profile on the guys and we choose the one we like."

"Sounds kind of impersonal, if you ask me?" Mimi blurted, scrunching up her nose.

"Well, then I suppose it's a good thing no on asked you, sweetie," Angel retorted, patting Mimi's shoulder. Mimi glared fiercely at Angel.

"What do you expect, Meems?" Maureen said, grabbing a bottle of wine from the fridge. "For us to meet the guy and take him out to dinner and be best buds or something? Most guys don't want to know what is done with their 'donation'. A few do it because they really want to help people have children, but most do it for the money. Plus, I wouldn't meet the guy even if we could. There is nothing personal between us."

Mimi gave a confused look. "I'd say a baby is pretty personal."

"Well, yes, it is, but then again it's not. He'll have nothing to do with it. Yes, he'll be this baby's biological father, but he won't be its dad. This is our baby," Maureen said, motioning between herself and Joanne, "Ya, know?"

"Yeah……but-" everyone groaned at Mimi's excessive questioning, "Won't it be weird to walk down the street and see all these guys and know that any of them could be your baby's father?"

Joanne took this one. "We're not going to say that we won't wonder from time to time who biologically fathered our child, but I don't think it will be that weird. It would only be weird if we felt like we were lacking something by not knowing who the father was, and we are a complete family, lacking nothing." Joanne spoke patiently as she checked to see if the pasta was done.

Mimi shook her head seemingly satisfied with Joanne's answer.

"Okay, everybody, I think we're set to go here," Maureen announced as she began placing bowls of salad and breadsticks on the table. Joanne put the pasta in a large serving bowl, poured the sauce over it and set it in the middle of the table as everyone began to take their seats and dig in.

"Rog, what's wrong? I thought you loved my pasta alfredo?" Joanne asked when she noticed that Roger had touched very little of his pasta.

"No, it's really good. It's just that….."

"What?" everyone ask in unison.

"No, never mind. Don't worry about it," Roger shrugged them off.

"Baby, I've never seen you not eat, and especially Joanne's pasta. You love this stuff. Are you sick?" Mimi asked placing her hand on his forehead to check for a fever.

"No, I'm fine," he insisted, brushing Mimi's hand away. "Just trust me, you don't want to know. I don't want to ruin it for everyone else."

"Well now you have to tell us," Mark said, pointing her fork at Roger. Everyone else stopped eating and stared a Roger. After a moment, he finally caved.

"Okay, fine! You wanna know what it is? You may think you do, but you really don't, but fine, I'll tell you, but you're going to regret it because you're going to be grossed out for the remainder of the evening. You may never even enjoy alfredo sauce again!!" Everyone looked back and fourth between each other, thoroughly confused. "Okay, we've been talking about sperm and sperm banks and 'donating', "Roger did the little quote sign with his fingers, "and then we sit down and I see….well….," he swallowed hard, "creamy, hot, white sauce dripping off my pasta…..and I just couldn't do it!"

Everyone slowly pushed their plates away, gagging at the thought. "You're right, Rog. We didn't want to know," Collins grimaced as he spit a mouthful of pasta into his napkin.

"Breadstick, anyone?" Angel offered.

"Yes, please!" everyone barked together.

After the short lived dinner, everyone retreated back into the living room to watch Friday the 13th, however, no one seemed too interested in the movie. Instead they continued to thumb through the profiles from the sperm bank.

"Hmmm, this one looks pretty good. Let's see, Donor 8620: 32 years old, African American, plays guitar, graduated from MIT with a degree in philosophy, fluent in Italian and Greek," Mark read from the profile.

"Put that one in the 'Think About It' pile," Maureen said, pointing to a pile on the corner of the coffee table.

They continued to read profile after profile, placing them in either the "Think About It" pile on the coffee table or the "Not a Snowball's Chance in Hell" pile on the floor behind the couch.

"Ooohhhhhhh…..check this one out," Angel began to read. "Donor 8512: 29 years old, Caucasian with dark brown hair, blue eyes, and medium build. Musically and dramatically gifted. Graduated from Juilliard and plays guitar, piano, harmonica, bass, violin, and cello. Currently works as a studio musician. His hobbies include acting, working out, painting, writing poetry and screenplays, and composing and producing music. Only thing listed under 'medical concerns' is wisdom teeth removal when he was 16. He describes himself as a tender heart; a Type B personality with an artist's soul. My God, he's a dream come true!" Angel exclaimed.

Maureen and Joanne raised their eyebrows and looked at each other.

"Oh, and Joanne, did I mention his father is a lawyer?!?!" Angel added. This obviously excited Joanne. She leaned over to grab the profile from Angel so she could look it over herself. Maureen looked anxiously over her shoulder.

After reading thoroughly over the paper, Joanne looked over at Maureen who was already looking at her, smiling. "Well, are you thinking what I'm thinking?"

"Are you thinking we just found a donor?" Maureen asked.

"Yes, ma'am!" Joanne grinned.

"Then yes, I am indeed thinking what you are thinking! We've found a donor!" Both girls threw their arms around each other and squeezed as tightly as they could stand it, then pulling back and sharing a sweet kiss.

"Awww…..you guys are gonna have a little biracial baby!" Mimi cooed, clapping her hands. The boys just rolled their eyes.

"So this is it? Donor 8512? He's the winner?" Joanne asked reaffirming what Maureen had said.

"Yes, but don't say it like that……'the winner'…….makes it sound like we're picking a race horse or something." Everyone giggled as Maureen got up and put the coveted profile sheet on the kitchen table so that it wouldn't get lost, then bounded back into the living room.

"Well, now that we got that mega decision out of the way, what do you say we scare the shit out of ourselves and watch Mr. Voorhees slice and dice?" Maureen said, holding up the video.

"Sounds fan-freakin-tastic!!" Roger grabbed the video from her and popped it into the VCR while everyone made themselves cozy.

Mark hopped into one of the papasan chairs (a/n: papasan chairs are the chairs that look like a giant bowl) and kicked off his shoes. Mimi and Roger took the other papasan chair and snuggled together under a blanket. Angel and Joanne were already sitting on the couch, and Collins sat with his feet stretched under the coffee table on the floor in front of Angel. In true drama queen style, Maureen dove, head first, onto the couch, sprawling out on top of Angel and Joanne.

"Get off me, you Froot Loop!!!" Joanne laughed, trying to push Maureen off. Maureen just giggled.

"Stop kicking your feet! You're gonna kick me in the face," Angel said trying to shield her head and face from Maureen's bare feet, "And then I'd be forced to kick you in your ass!"

Maureen adjusted herself so that her fellow couch dwellers could be comfortable, but remained lying down with her feet in Angel's lap and her head in Joanne, which neither of them really minded. Her feet were clean and pretty with painted nails and Angel loved hearing Maureen cackle when she periodically tickled the soles and Joanne would take any excuse to run her fingers through Maureen's long, brunette curls.

As the movie played, everyone seemed very into it; everyone except Joanne. She simply could not tear her eyes away from the beautiful girl lying in her lap; the woman she hoped would soon be the mother of her child.

**Yeah, yeah, you know...TBC Don't forget to review!!**


	11. Chapter 11: Take good care of her

**Okay, by popular demand...Chapter 11**

Chapter 11

Joanne and Maureen sat on a gurney in the fertility clinic, there legs daggled over the edge. Joanne wore a hospital gown that practically swallowed her and hospital issue blue booties, while Maureen dressed in her street clothes.

Joanne was at the clinic for her eggs retrieval procedure. The name 'egg retrieval' made Maureen cringe, though she wasn't sure exactly why. "I just don't like that name. It sounds…..icky," she would shudder every time it was mentioned.

Joanne tried to keep her cool on the outside, but was a nervous wreck on the inside. The unexpected always worried her and an egg retrieval procedure was definitely uncharted territory. Maureen had developed a keen sense of Joanne's nervousness and gently patted her hand.

"This is going to be a piece of cake. Remember, Dr. J said that they're gonna give you some really good drugs to make you a little loopy and then you'll wake up in the recovery room and it'll all be over and I'll be able to take you home." Maureen tried to reassure her girlfriend, but in all reality, she was as nervous as Joanne was and Joanne could see that.

"Hey, my girls, how you doing?" Dr. Judd asked, walking around the corner of the curtain wearing blue hospital scrubs. "You doing alright? Are you ready?" She patted Joanne's bare knee.

"I'm okay." Joanne tried hard to hold it together, but had to look up to keep a tear from rolling down her face.

"Oh, God love ya! Everything is going to be fine, alright," Dr. Judd said, grabbing a tissue from the table next to the gurney and handing it to Joanne. "I'm going to take good care of you."

"I know. I know. I don't know why I'm being so silly," Joanne chuckled with embarrassment, dabbing her eyes with the tissue. "This is such a simple procedure. It's not a big deal. I don't know why I'm acting this way." Maureen moved closer to her, trying to provide any comfort she could.

"No, it's a very big deal." Dr. Judd stopped her. "You guys are making one of the biggest decisions of your lives and it's exciting, and stressful, and nerve-wracking, and scary as hell. You've got a lot of emotions running through you right now. Not to mention we've been pumping you full of hormones. God Almighty, I'd be crying too!" Joanne and Maureen couldn't help but laugh.

"Dr. Judd, they are ready for us," a nurse said, peeking her head around the curtain. She was already in sterile scrubs complete with cap and over-the-shoe booties. Dr. Judd nodded to her as she pulled back the curtain.

"Okay, Jo, we are going to have you lay back and get comfy." Maureen hopped off the gurney and helped Joanne lay back. "We're going to start an IV and give you some medicine to help you relax a little, okay."

"Okay." Joanne grabbed Maureen's hand and squeezed as the nurse came to the other side of the bed to start the IV. Though Maureen still hated the sight of needles, she stayed, laying her head on top of Joanne's while still holding her hand, wanting to be there for her in any way that she could.

Once the nurse had started the IV and administered the sedative, Dr. Judd gave Maureen a look, signifying that it was time for her to go to the waiting room. The last thing she wanted to do was leave her Pookie, but she knew that she was in good hands.

"Alright, Pookie, I'm going to head down to the waiting room and I'll see you in the recovery room really soon and you'll be all done, kay?"

The sedative had already started to take an affect on Joanne. "O-okay, Honeybear."

"I love you, Jo." Maureen kissed her a few times on the forehead as Joanne's eye lids fluttered a bit.

"Iluuyatoo," she slurred. Dr. Judd and the nurse each grabbed a side of the gurney and began to wheel it down the corridor. As Dr. Judd passed her, Maureen reached out and grabbed her by the elbow. Dr. Judd motioned for the nurse to stop as she turned to face Maureen.

"Take good care of her, okay."

"I will. I promise," Dr. Judd reassured, touching Maureen's shoulder before heading back down the hall with the nurse and Joanne, who was getting pretty loopy on the gurney.

Maureen sat in the waiting room, flipping through Time magazine for what seemed like an eternity before she finally saw Dr. Judd walking down the hall. It had been just shy of an hour since she last saw her pushing a half-baked Joanne down the corridor. The smile on Dr. Judd's face immediately calmed her nerves.

"How did it go?" she asked as Dr. Judd sat down in the chair beside her.

"Maureen, it went fantastic!"

"So you got the eggs?"

"Yep, we got plenty of eggs and the ones we don't use for this procedure we can freeze and keep just in case we have do try again." Maureen swallowed hard at the thought of having to do this again, but she quickly pushed that thought away.

"And Joanne?"

"Joanne is fine! She did beautifully. They are taking her to recovery now."

"Can I see her?"

"Of course. She's still pretty out of it from the sedative we gave her, but yeah, you can see her. Come with me." Maureen practically threw the magazine down as she jumped up to follow Dr. J.

When she entered the room, she saw Joanne laying on the gurney with her eyes kind of rolling around in her head, much like she had been the last time she saw her. She stepped right next to the bed and took Jo's hand.

"Hey, baby," she whispered, "You're all done. Dr. J says you did great." She leaned down to kiss Jo's forehead.

"I'm all done?" Joanne asked groggily.

"Yep. I can take you home in an hour or so. You just rest, okay. I'm right here if you need anything.

Maureen brought Joanne home from the clinic roughly an hour after the procedure. Jo lay on the couch most of the day sleeping off the sedative that they had given her.

The day after the procedure, she was up and about, as usual, though she claimed she still felt a little out of it from the drugs they had given her the day previous.

Both girls were relieved that the egg retrieval had gone so well, but another huge day still starred them in the face. Donor 8512 had done his part and Joanne had done hers. It was now all up to Maureen. The next day she would start running the final leg of the race and she knew it would be a demanding one. If all went according to plan, this leg would last 9 long months and end with a grueling sprint to the finish line, but what a trophy she would have to show for it.

**TBC...as usual**


	12. Chapter 12: Sleepless night

**Okay, I probably won't be around much today so I figured I'd update this now...at 3:30 am so you guys wouldn't have a stroke when there wasn't an update today. LOL!! It's short, but sweet and will tide you over until Thursday.**

**Thanks so much for the reviews! They are so encouraging! I'm so glad you guys are enjoying this b/c I'm really enjoying writing it!**

Chapter 12

Maureen tossed and turned again and again. Hoping, just as she had for the last 6 hours that she could get some sleep, but things weren't going her way. Her eyes peeked open for the millionth time that night to look at the clock. It flashed 4:08. "Grrrr…" she growled, spastically throwing the covers off and rolling out of bed. Maureen usually had no problem falling asleep and staying asleep, but today was not a usual day. Her nerves were shot. "Jeez…..I'm going to be impregnated today! It would be nice to get some shut eye," she snarled aloud to herself.

Her convulsive movements had awoken a lightly sleeping Joanne, who wasn't having much luck getting any rest either. "We don't have to be up until 5:30, but I guess we're up, huh?" she said, rubbing her eyes and sitting up in bed.

"I know I sure am," Maureen said, pacing the floor beside the bed. "I know I'm going to be exhausted today. Hell, I'm exhausted right now, but I cannot fall asleep. I'm excited and nervous and scared and I just keep thinking what if we aren't as ready as we think we are? Less than two years ago I took a hamster back to the pet store because I got tired of taking care of it and now I could be pregnant by the end of the day? How does that work?" Her emotions began to take over. Her eyes became wet she and she could hear her voice start to crack. Joanne could hear it too. "Damn hormones!" she said, wiping her eyes with the sleeve of her night shirt

"Come here." Joanne patted the spot on the bed beside her. Maureen reluctantly flopped down on the bed beside Joanne. "Baby, I know you're scared. I'm scared too." Now her eyes began to well up. "But we are so ready for this," she reassured Maureen, taking her face into her hands and wiping away the tears that had begun to roll down her lover's cheeks. "We are going to get through this. Everything is going to be okay."

It was something so simple, yet some how, this made Maureen feel a little better. "You promise?"

"Cross my wee widdle heart." Joanne criss-crossed her heart with her finger, kissed it, and touched the tip of Maureen's nose. A smile crept across Maureen's face as Joanne crawled out of bed. "C'mon, I'll make you some breakfast. You haven't been up early enough for me to make you breakfast since……well……ever actually. Blueberry waffles sound good?"

"Throw in a cup of coffee the size of the Manhattan and you have got yourself a deal!"

Joanne flipped on the coffee pot. "Blueberry waffles it is then."

**TBC...like you didn't already know...**


	13. Chapter 13: DeJa Vue

**Okay my little fan fic freaks, here's the deal. This will probably be the last fic for a few days. I'm going to be spending time with my family and I won't have internet access so I won't be able to post. I probably won't have a lot of time to write anyway. However, I promise, Christmas morning, you will have a fic! I promise!! So just bear with me, be patient, and you will be rewarded.**

Chapter 13

It was like de ja vue. Both Maureen and Joanne sat on the same gurney, in the same room, in the same fertility clinic as they had just 48 hours earlier. Only this time, Maureen was the one in the unflattering hospital gown. However, she did refuse to wear the booties, though her feet were freezing.

Maureen was not only the most nervous she had ever been, but she was also rather unhappy. The nurse had made her remove her ear rings and the barbells from both her naval and her nipple (yes, Joanne had finally given in a few months back), which really annoyed her for some reason, though she didn't know exactly why. "They aren't going to be anywhere near my ears, my belly button, or my tits. Why do I have to take them out?" she had argued, but the nurse didn't budge and eventually wore Maureen down.

"Hey, strangers," came a familiar voice. Dr. Judd popped her head around the curtain and stepped in, again, wearing blue surgical scrubs. "How you guys doing? Are you ready?" she asked, rubbing her hands together in anticipation.

"As ready we we're ever going to be," Maureen sighed.

Dr. Judd could sense her nervousness and tickled her knee. "You're going to do fine. I promise. Your procedure is actually shorter and easier than Joanne's so this should be smooth sailing."

"We'll see." Maureen rolled her eyes.

"Now, do either of you guys have any questions for me before we get started?" Dr J asked, settling herself down in a stool.

"Tell me again how long this is actually going to take." Maureen knew that Dr. Judd had told her before, but she could barely remember her own name at this point.

"Once we actually get started, the procedure only takes a few minutes. You'll be done before you know it. Promise!"

"And I won't hurt?"

"Nope, it shouldn't. There might be some discomfort, but you shouldn't be in any pain."

Joanne put her arm around Maureen. "And how long before we know if it….."Jo searched for a good word, "…..uh…..took?"

"Well, in two weeks we can do a blood test that should tell us whether a pregnancy has occurred. If it has, we'll schedule an ultrasound for two weeks after that. If the pregnancy is confirmed during the ultrasound, we'll refer you two to an obstetrician who will provide care throughout your pregnancy." Both women nodded, seemingly satisfied.

"Is there anything else?"

"I don't think so," Joanne said, trying to think.

"Not that I can think of," Maureen said simultaneously.

"Alright then, Maureen, why don't you hop down and we'll take a little stroll down the hall." Dr. Judd stood up.

"You mean I have to walk? Joanne got to ride on the gurney!"

"Yes, but Joanne was on sedatives and was seeing little pink Cindy Lauper monsters on the ceiling on the way down the hall. Don't worry. You'll get your ride. After the procedure, you'll be stuck on your back with your feet up in the air for an hour. Then you'll be confined to bed for the rest of the day when you get home."

"Fiiiiine," Maureen sarcastically huffed as she hopped off the gurney.

Dr. J allowed Joanne to walk with Maureen all the way down the corridor to the door of the procedure room.

"Alright, love birds, this is our stop," Dr. J said upon reaching the door. Maureen looked at Joanne nervously, trying not to get emotional. She knew that their baby future now lay in her hands and that scared her more than she could ever express.

"I love you, Honeybear," Joanne whispered, leaning close to Maureen.

"I love you too, Pookie." Maureen did her best to keep it together as Joanne kissed her softly on the lips.

"Think pregnant thoughts, okay." Joanne called, backing slowly down the hall towards the waiting room. Maureen had to laugh as Dr. Judd put her arm around her shoulder and led her into the operating room.

This was it. There's no turning back now.

**TBC...in a few days...I promise. Trust me!**


	14. Chapter 14: The Phone Call

**Merry Christmas, my Little Fan Fic Freaks!! See, didn't I tell you I'd post today!**

**Okay, go back and review Chapter 13 if need be. It's been a few days so you may be a little rusty.**

Chapter 14

After two weeks of nerve wracking waiting, the day was finally here. Yesterday, Maureen had gone down to the clinic to have blood drawn and tested to see if she was indeed pregnant. She wasn't all that happy about being stuck again and wondered why she couldn't just pee on a stick, but the nurse assured her this was much more accurate so Maureen toughed it out. After she had drawn a vile of blood, the nurse instructed her to go home and that they would call her sometimes tomorrow afternoon with the results.

"You want me to wait a whole day?" Maureen was shocked.

"You've waited this long. One more day isn't going to kill you."

"It might. You never know," Maureen had huffed, sulking out of the clinic.

It had been the longest night of Maureen and Joanne's lives and they hadn't slept a wink, so the next day they decided to have Mimi and Angel come over for lunch to help keep their minds off the phone call they would be waiting for.

"So, do you feel pregnant?" Mimi asked sitting on a bar stool in the kitchen. Angel, who was sitting next to her on the other stool, elbowed her right in the ribs.

"You ignoramus, we are supposed to be helping keep their minds off of this!" she whispered through clenched teeth.

Maureen apparently didn't hear Angel and appeared to not be too distressed by Mimi's question. "I don't know…..maybe. I don't know. I don't really feel anything, I guess. I just……I don't know how I feel." Maureen was helping Joanne fix lunch for the four of them. They had done their best all morning to keep themselves busy. They had already cleaned the kitchen and the bathroom and mopped the entire apartment.

"How you doing, Jo? You've been awful quiet all morning." Angel said. Joanne was been cutting vegetables for a salad.

"Huh? What?" Joanne appeared to be in a daze. "Oh, I'm fine. I'm just chopping the vegetables."

"You want some help?

No, no, I don't need any help."

Angel and Mimi kind of felt like bums, having watched Maureen and Joanne practically clean the whole apartment and make lunch while they watched, but they knew that it was best for them to just let the two of them go. They needed to keep themselves busy.

"Okay, I need to ask you guys something," Maureen said, turning away from the lettuce she was tearing and towards Mimi and Angel. "Would it be okay if, when we got the phone call, Joanne and I went into the bedroom and you guys stayed out here? Just so we can have like….some privacy for a minute? Ya know?" Maureen felt bad asking. She didn't want Meems and Angel to think that they didn't want them here for this huge news or that they didn't appreciate them. She just wanted to be able to have a moment to gather her thoughts with Joanne.

"Oh, Sweetie, God yes!! That's fine!" Angel said. "You guys take all the time you need in there. We understand. This is going to be huge and you'll need some time to get your thoughts straight and all. Maybe just knock on the door 3 times for a yes and twice…..for….uh….not yes…so we'll know." Angel felt bad about the "not yes" part and prayed they wouldn't have to use it.

"You got it, baby." Maureen smiled at Angel. "Thanks!"

Maureen and Joanne continued to shuffle about the kitchen while Angel and Mimi sat silently trying to come up with conversation that didn't involve Maureen possibly being pregnant.

"Sooooo……how bout them Jets?" Mimi finally broke the awkward silence. Angel looked over at with a "What the hell was that?" look. Mimi shrugged back with an "I have no effing idea" look.

"You guys, you don't have to try to make conversation to keep our minds off of this. It's not like it's your job or nothing. We just wanted to have someone here when-"

_RING……_

Maureen was cut off. Everyone shared a nervous glance then quickly looked to the ringing phone that lay on the counter. Maureen promptly picked up the phone, but paused as it rang a second time.

"I can't do it. You answer it!" Maureen shoved the phone into Joanne's face.

"What?"

"Answer it!"

The phone rang a third time.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes! Hurry, before the answering machine picks up!" She was still holding the phone and shook it frantically in Joanne's face. Joanne took a deep breath, swallowed hard, grabbed the phone from Maureen, and pressed "Talk".

"Hello? Yes, Dr. J, this is Joanne. Yeah, could you actually hold on a second?" Joanne put the receiver to her shoulder and pointed towards the bedroom door.

"Oh!" Maureen had almost forgotten. "Right! Yeah, guys, we'll see you in a minute," she said, looking back at Mimi and Angel as she and Joanne walked into the bedroom.

"Good luck, chicas!" Angel called. "We love you!" Maureen waved to them just as Joanne shut the bedroom door behind them.

Mimi and Angel linked arms anxiously and did a nervous little dance over to one of the papasan chairs. They sat quietly, straining their ears for a knock on the door.

"God, I can't remember when I've ever been this nervous." Mimi said with a shaky breath.

"Shut up, Mimi. Just listen." They waited another minute or so.

"...Man, I can't stop shaking."

"Mimi, zip it."

Mimi sat quietly for another moment.

"Gosh, what is taking them so long?"

"Mimi, if you don't shut your hole I'm going to-"

_KNOCK!_

Mimi grabbed Angel's thigh as Angel grabbed her by the arm.

_KNOCK!_

They sat silently waiting…..1…2….3….4 seconds for the third knock. They strained their ears…..waiting ever so quietly. They waited and waited, but the third knock never came. The only noise their straining ears heard was the sound of a sob echoing from the bedroom. It took what seemed like an eternity for Angel to find her voice again.

"Oh, God, my poor girls. They've got to be devastated," Angel sighed, putting her head in her hands. Her heart ached for them

"Ang, what do we do now?" Mimi asked quietly.

"They need some time. I think we should just go and we'll catch up with them later." Angel took Mimi's hand and gently pulled her up from the chair and led her to the door.

"Are you sure we should leave them?" Mimi was still looking back at the bedroom door, almost digging her heels into the floor to keep Angel from pulling her towards the front door.

"They'll be alright. They'll call when they are ready. They just need some time. C'mon, Meems." Mimi reluctantly followed Angel out the door and tried to close as gently as possible behind her.

Joanne heard the door close, and though she hated to admit it, she was relieved. She didn't think she could deal with anyone right now.

"_I'm so sorry, Joanne. The in vitro didn't take. Maureen isn't pregnant." _The words still echoed in her ears. Jo couldn't even remember if she had said "thank you" or "good-bye" before hanging up the phone.

Telling Maureen was the hardest thing she had ever had to do. As she hung up, Maureen just looked at her, much like a child would look to a parent to tell them that everything was okay, but Joanne knew that she couldn't tell the beautiful woman in front of her that everything was okay, because everything was not okay. She stood for a moment trying to figure out how she was supposed to tell Maureen this.

"Baby…." she tried so hard to keep it together. "Baby, I'm sorry," was all she was able to muster before a sob caught in her throat, but she didn't have to say anymore. Maureen knew. Jo could see it in her eyes.

Joanne watched her for a moment as Maureen just stared back at her ash she pulled her hand up to her mouth. Her chin began to quiver and her face contorted. The little sobs that were catching in her throat grew bigger and bigger, but it wasn't until Joanne finally threw her arms around her that she finally feel apart. All the frustration, pain, sadness, and anger came pouring out.

Joanne could feel Maureen's knees start to buckle and slowly lowered both herself and Maureen to the floor, never breaking the embrace. Maureen reached around Joanne and clutched the back of her t-shirt with both fists, sobbing uncontrollably.

Joanne wept too, stroking Maureen's long, brunette curls and kissing her on the head. "I'm so sorry, baby. I'm so sorry," was the only thing she could think to say. What else could she say?

After a while, Maureen's sobs subsided a bit, but she still kept her head buried in Joanne's shoulder and the handfuls of Joanne's t-shirt tightly balled up in her fists.

"Baby, we'll just try again. We'll try again. We'll try as many times as it take, okay? I promise! We are going to get through this. We'll just keep trying. We'll just keep trying. Okay, baby?" Joanne rubbed Maureen's back and tried to keep herself composed.

After few moments, Maureen finally spoke in a raspy voice, her sentence littered with gasps and little sobs. "I don't know if I can go through all this again."

"Yes you can, baby. You can. You are the strongest person I know. We can do this. We'll get through this together."

Joanne continued to just hold Maureen for the better part of 30 minutes, rubbing her back and occasionally kissing the top of her head and telling her that she loved her and that everything was going to work out in the end. She only hoped that Maureen wouldn't give up. She only hoped she would try again, if only once more.

**TBC...**

**Okay, I know...the worst Christmas present EVER!!! I really didn't mean for this to be the chaper you would get on Christmas. It just worked out that way, but bear with me, kids. Trust me. We're gonna get through this. Promise!!**


	15. Chapter 15: The Morning After

**Okay, so I'm a heartless bastard for giving you such a depressing chapter for Christmas and then leaving you hanging for a few days, but I've been insanely busy and have had some internet issues. But here ya go. Chapter 15! Things are going to get better for our girls. Promise.**

Chapter 15

Joanne slowly slid the bedroom door open and peered in. Maureen lay in bed, facing away from the door, a tangle of brown curls poking out from under the white down comforter that was pulled up to her ears.

"Baby?" Maureen did not move. Joanne slowly stepped in and tip-toed towards the bed. "Baby?" Joanne asked again, watching for Maureen to stir.

Maureen heard Joanne come in, but lay motionless, hoping that Joanne would assume she was asleep and leave. Tears streamed down her face once more and the last thing she wanted was for Joanne to see her crying again. She was sick of crying and she just knew that Joanne had to be sick of watching her. Jo had held her so many times yesterday and even into the night and she was sure that Joanne's patience had to be wearing thin.

"Baby..." Joanne sat down on the bed behind Maureen and pulled the twisted mess of hair out of her face, "It's almost noon. I thought you might want something to eat."

"No thanks. I'm not hungry." Maureen prayed that Jo couldn't see her tears, but her red tear-stained face was impossible to hide.

"Honey, you haven't eaten since yesterday morning. You've got to be hungry." Joanne tried to reason with her. Maureen continued to stare at the wall, determined to keep it together until Joanne left.

Joanne wanted so badly to get Maureen out of bed, feed her, and try to get her to talk about what had happened the day before. Though she had cried quite a lot, she had spoken very little since the phone call. However, Jo knew when to choose her battles and she knew that this was one she should just leave alone.

"Alright, sweetie, but if you need anything just holler, okay." Jo leaned down and kissed her head. "I'll be right out in the living room." She scooched off the bed and walked quietly towards the door.

"I did..." Maureen whispered, out of the blue.

Joanne stopped, almost at the doorway, and turned back to look at Maureen who was still facing the wall. "You did what, baby?"

"I did feel pregnant. Mimi…..she uh….she asked yesterday before…before the phone call if I felt pregnant." Maureen sniffled a bit and Joanne made her way back to the bed. "I told her I didn't know, but the truth is I did. At least I thought I did."

Joanne reached the bed and put her hand on Maureen's shoulder. Maureen continued to stare at the wall and fight the tears, but her resistance was futile and the tears poured.

"When they called…I was sure they would tell us I was pregnant. I really did. I would have bet on it." Maureen voice started to crack, quivering more with every word as Joanne's grip on her shoulder tightened. She rolled over, meeting Joanne's tear filled eyes with her own. "I was really happy." She broke down once more, weeping a pitiful, helpless cry. Joanne wrapped her arms around her.

"I know, sweetie," Joanne whispered.

After a few moments, Maureen's weeping settled and Joanne tried to brush Maureen's matted, tear-soaked hair from her face.

Maureen lifted her head out of the crook of Joanne's arm. "God, you must be so sick of watching me do this," Maureen said, wiping her tears, frustrated.

"What? Baby….what do you mean, 'sick of watching you do this'? Do what? Cry?" Maureen nodded. "Honey, you've just been through 6 weeks of hormone therapy, needles, medicine, doctor's appointments, medical procedures, and waiting. And then we find out that what we wanted to happen didn't happen. You have every right to cry and be angry and upset. You cry as many times and as long as you need to, okay."

Maureen took a deep breath, seemingly in awe of her girlfriend. "Have I ever told you how amazing you are?" Joanne just smiled as Maureen wrapped her arms around Joanne and tucked her nose back into the crook of Joanne's arm. Both girls were silent for a few moments.

"Maur, you know, if you don't want to do this again……I'll understand. Maybe we can look into adoption or some-"

"No!" Maureen said firmly, quickly lifting her head to attention. So firmly that it almost startled Joanne. "I've been thinking and…..I uh…I want to do this again. I mean, yes, this has been the most gut-wrenching, up and down, roller coaster ride that I have ever been on and I know that I said yesterday that I wasn't sure if I could go through it all again, but……" she began to push herself into an upright position, wiping her face with the comforter, "I still want to try again." Joanne couldn't hold back her relieved smile as she took Maureen's hands.

"Jo, those two weeks that I thought I was pregnant, they were the most amazing days I think I've ever experienced. To think that this tiny little creature could be living inside of me….it just….it blew me away. And now……now I know that what I was feeling were just the dreams of my heart, but……I still want to experience those feelings for real and I'll try as many times as it takes."

Joanne squeezed Maureen's hands. "Really? I mean, you really want to put yourself through all of this again? The fertility drugs? The in vitro procedure? The waiting? The nerves?"

"Hey, no one said it would be easy, but I'm looking at the big picture. We're doing this for our baby, right?" Maureen said, smiling for the first time since yesterday's phone call.

"Right!" Joanne smiled back and leaned in for a kiss.

"So…when you said 'something to eat", did you have something in mind," Maureen asked, "Because I think I could eat."

"Honeybear, I'll make you whatever you want. You just name it. If we don't have it, I'll find someone that does." Joanne was delighted that Maureen was actually up, and talking, and willing to eat.

"Anything?" Maureen inquired.

"Anything. Name it."

"Sloppy Joes and tater tots," Maureen stated plainly, without skipping a beat.

"So I guess we are cheating with our vegetarian diet tonight, huh?"

"Yep! Fuck vegetarians. Go slaughter me a cow, woman!"

Joanne smiled. Maureen was joking around. Things were going to be okay. "You got it, babe. Give me 15 minutes to run to the store and get us some dead cow."

"I think I'm gonna jump in the shower while your gone. I'm a little….gamey." Maureen scrunched up her nose.

"Okay, honey. Be back in a few." Joanne said as she grabbed her purse and coat and headed out the door.

Maureen stood under the hot water for a moment. She wiped the water and hair out of her face with both hands as she took a deep breath. She was determined. She was not going to let this road block keep her from having what she wanted. She would not let the pain and the hurt and the anger win. She was going to fight. She was going to do whatever it took to have a baby, and nothing was going to stand in her way.

**TBC...but I'm sure you already knew that.**


	16. Chapter 16: Four Months Later

**Here you go, kiddies!! Enjoy! I think redemption for me may be near!!**

Chapter 16

It had been 4 months since Maureen had first confessed to Joanne that she wanted to have a baby and it had been 4 of the craziest months they had ever been through. Since then, winter had turned to spring, and spring into summer. In 4 months they had been to doctor's appointment after doctor's appointment. They had been poked, prodded, and stuck more times than they cared to remember. They had survived their first heart-breaking attempt at in vitro, but had fought on.

Since their negative pregnancy test, they had had to tell all their friends and family that they would not be parents by Christmas. They had to deal with all the "I'm so sorry"s and the "These things take time" and "Everything happens for a reason" speeches. They had dealt with the pain of failure, but were soon back to see Dr. Judd.

Maureen had started a whole new round of fertility drugs, and they both toughed out 2 more weeks of needles, nausea, headaches, and mood swings. Maureen had donned the hospital gown once more and went through another in vitro procedure, another two weeks of waiting, yet another blood test, and another sleepless night.

In 4 months they had been through a whole gauntlet of emotions; excitement, anxiety, hope, defeat, anger, and despair, but they had charged on and now they had come to another crossroad and awaited another phone call that would decide what road they would travel next. One road would lead down a bumpy, uncharted road known as pregnancy. The other would lead them back to the beginning to start the journey all over again.

The window air conditioning unit hummed in the back ground as the girls sat on the couch in their living room; the same couch that they were sitting on when Maureen first asked, "Pookie, we're stable, right?" on that cold February night. Now Maureen sat flipping anxiously through the channels on TV, never stopping longer than 10 seconds on any station. Joanne attempted to finish up some paper work for a case she was working on, but her efforts were futile. All she could think about that phone.

"Oh God bless, I thought work would keep my mind off waiting, but **it's not working**!" Joanne slammed the ring binder closed and slung it across the floor.

Maureen just smiled and patted Joanne's bare foot.

"Okay, what is up? You are being way too mellow here." Joanne said, surprised at how calmly Maureen was taking the long wait.

"Well, last time I really let myself get excited. I really let myself believe that I was pregnant and I think that was why I took it so hard. This time I'm just trying to stay really calm, cool, and collected, and leave my heart out of it until we know for sure." Jo gave her an understanding smile.

"So, do we know who is going to answer the phone this time?" Joanne asked, wanting to be prepared when the time came.

"I want to answer it," Maureen said confidently.

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, I know I panicked last time, but I want to do it."

"Alright, babe. It's all yours." Joanne grabbed the TV Guide and began to flip through it, but her browsing was quickly interrupted.

_RING……_

The girls looked at one another, then down to the cordless phone that was lying between them on the couch.

"Speak of the Devil." Joanne swallowed hard and handed the phone to Maureen.

"Here goes nothing." Maureen pressed "Talk" and took a moment to clear her throat before raising the phone to her ear.

"Hello? Yes, Dr. Judd, hi! Yeah, it's Maureen. We're doing okay, just kind of anxious." Joanne scooted closer to Maureen and started ringing her hands restlessly. "Yeah, results would be great. Okay………really?……" Maureen's lip began to quiver and her eyes began to well up with tears. Joanne feared the worst. "Okay, Dr. J…uh…thanks. Yeah, we'll be in touch. Thank you. Buh-bye." Maureen pressed "End" and stared blankly at her knees as she lowered the phone from her ear. Big tears had begun to roll down her cheeks.

Joanne's heart sank. She moved closer and wrapped her arms around Maureen. "Oh baby, I'm so sor-"

"It worked." It took a moment for it to register in Joanne's head. "Baby, it worked." Maureen lifted her head from Joanne's shoulder and pulled away to look her in the eye. "It worked!"

Joanne took a shaky breath. "You mean……you mean……?"

Maureen laid her hands gingerly on Joanne's cheeks. "Baby…we're pregnant. I'm pregnant! It worked! We're going to have a baby!!!" Joanne was speechless. She couldn't wrap her mind around it. A combination between a sob and a laugh developed in her throat. She just looked straight back into Maureen's eyes before throwing her arms around her, both of them collapsing into each other's arms in a fit of giggles and tears, kissing each other in between sobs.

After a few moments, they pulled away, but neither one of them had really caught their breath yet. Joanne still couldn't believe it. "Oh my God……OH MY GOD! We're pregnant???" Maureen could only nod and grin. "You mean there's somebody in there?" she asked, gently poking Maureen's stomach.

"That's what they said," Maureen shrugged, looking down at her belly.

"Oh my God!" Joanne leaned in and kissed Maureen as best she could through her laughter. "Lay back! Let me see, let me see!" Joanne laid Maureen back against arm of the couch so she could get a better angle. She pulled up Maureen's shirt a little and giggling at the sight of her bare belly.

Maureen just laughed. "Sweetie, you're not going to be able to see anything! I've been pregnant for two weeks. The baby is like the size of a pin head! I won't even have a pooch for months."

"I don't care," Joanne said, laying her hand on Maureen's still flat tummy and staring at it in awe. "Hi, baby," she said softly, leaning in close and kissing right below Maureen's belly button. Maureen laughed not only at the sensation of a kiss on the tummy, but at the fact that Joanne was talking to an embryo that didn't even have ears yet.

"This is so crazy. There is actually somebody in there right now!! Gosh, we got to start calling people! We've got to tell everyone!" Joanne jumped up to grab the phone from the coffee table, but Maureen grabbed her by the back of her pants.

"Hold on there, Paco! Let's settle for a minute. First of all, let's not tell 'everyone'; just the people who know we are getting our results back today meaning, my parents, your parents, and the Bohos. I don't want to have to go back and tell the whole world if something should go wrong again. Second, we have all night to make phone calls. Right now, I just want to snuggle with you for a while….okay."

Joanne smiled, getting her wits back about her. "The is a brilliant idea. When did you become the calm, cool, and collected one?"

"Well, somebody's got to be the brains of this outfit," Maureen joked, beckoning for Jo to lie beside her. Jo snuggled in next to her, laying a hand back on Maureen's belly.

"I don't even have a belly yet and you are already obsessed with the belly. You are going to be obsessed with the belly aren't you?" Maureen giggled, laying her hand on top of Joanne's.

"Oh, I will definitely be obsessed with the belly so get used to it!"

Maureen rested her chin on the top of Joanne's head. She could not honestly believe it. They had done it. She was pregnant. There was a tiny little creature growing inside of her and in 9 months it was going to come out and she and Joanne would be responsible for it. From this day on, it wasn't just Maureen and Joanne anymore. They weren't just a couple anymore. They were a family.

**TBC...DUH!!!**

**Okay, so am I forgiven for my terrible Christmas present?**


	17. Chapter 17: Telling the Parents

Chapter 17

After a while of snuggling, the girls decided it was time to start sharing the news with their closest family and friends.

Maureen couldn't believe it, but she was actually excited as she dialed her parent's number. She had always been nervous about telling her parents anything. They had not been happy when an 18 year old Maureen had told them she was dropping out of college and moving to the city to become an artist. They were also not happy with the fact that she was sharing an East Village squat with 4 men.

Needless to say they weren't happy about her announcement two years ago that she was seeing a woman and though they had come to accept and even like Joanne, she didn't expect them to be happy when she called to tell them her and Joanne would be attempting in vitro. However, to her amazement, both her parents had been ecstatic. Maureen assumed it was because they never thought that she would settle down and start a family. She figured they didn't even think it was possible.

"Mom? Hey, yeah, it's me. So….how do you feel about being a grandma?" Maureen said, biting her lip.

Joanne could hear Maureen's mother's excited scream through the phone as she sat across the couch. Maureen cringed at the loud shriek, quickly pulling the phone away from her head. She checked her ear for blood before cautiously placing the phone back next to her ear.

"Yeah….yes, I'm serious. Yeah, they just called a little while ago. Well, we're supposed to call later and make an appointment for two weeks from now to get an ultrasound. If everything still looks good, then they'll refer us to an OB."

Maureen had a hard time getting her mother off the phone, but after a few minutes of talking and explaining their future plans and saying hello to her dad, she was eventually able to get their conversation to wind down.

"Okay, Mom…yeah……love you too. Yeah, I'll be in touch. Bye…..okay Mom…..buh-bye."

Maureen sighed heavily and smiled as she hung up. "Well, that went well."

"I'm so glad. So they're really excited about this?" Joanne asked.

"I know. It's shocking, but they are. I don't think my parents have ever gotten excited about anything….like…ever, but they seem to be about this." After a moment, she handed the phone to Joanne. "Okay, your turn!"

Joanne took the phone and smirked at Maureen as she dialed her parent's number. Unlike Maureen's parents, Joanne's parent's had always been accepting of her lifestyle and supported her and told her she could do anything she wanted with her life, though they had pushed her ever so slightly into the law profession After two rings she heard her mother pick up the phone

"Howard! Howard, come here! Hurry!" Joanne heard her mother yell to her father in the background. "Joanne?"

"Hello there, Grandma Claire!" Joanne smiled into the phone.

"Hi, sweetie. Your father and I have…wait….what?"

Joanne's grin widened. "You heard me. I said, 'Hello, Grandma Claire!'"

"Oh my goodness! Oh my goodness! You're kidding! It worked? You guys are….? Maureen is….? She's really….?"

"I believe the word you are searching for is 'pregnant', mother." Joanne heard her mother burst into tears.

"And I'm gonna be a….?" Claire sniffled.

"Grandma. Yes ma'am!" Joanne answered.

"Harold, it worked! They are going to have a baby! You're going to be a grandpa!" Joanne heard her mother explaining to father. "Oh my goodness! Congratulations, muffin!" she directed back at Joanne. "That's so wonderful! I'm so happy! You're going to be a mother! Maureen too! Oh, let me talk to Maureen!"

"Okay, hold on." Joanne put her hand over the receiver and handed the phone to Maureen. "Here. She wants to talk to you." Maureen's eyes widened. She had obviously not expected to be a part of the conversation, but she took the receiver anyway and placed it up to her ear.

"Hello there. Yeah, I know. It's pretty crazy, it's it? Well thank you. Yeah, my parents are pretty excited too." Maureen continued to talk to Mrs. Jefferson for a few minutes. Joanne rested her elbow on the back of the couch and rested her chin on her fist, watching Maureen. She still couldn't believe it. Maureen was pregnant; her girlfriend, the woman sitting in front of her right now was going to have a baby. And not just any baby; her baby.

"Okay, well, I'll let you chat back at your daughter for a bit. Okay Mrs. Jefferson…..yes, I promise I'll let you know if I need anything. Okay, mmmbye." Maureen smiled and winked at Joanne as she handed the phone back to her.

Joanne took the phone and spent a few more minutes talking to her mother. She also spoke to her father for a short time before finally bringing to conversation to a close, promising that she would keep in touch.

"Okay, just one more group to go," Maureen said after Joanne had hung up the phone.

"And how do we want to tell them? It wouldn't be any fun at all to just call and say, 'we're pregnant'. I want to see the looks on their faces!"

"Alright, I have an idea," Maureen said, hopping up from the couch and slipping on her flip-flops. "C'mon, put your shoes on and grab your cellular. We're going for a little stroll." Joanne jumped up and slid on her white canvas tenies and grabbed her purse.

"Avenue B?" Joanne asked.

"Avenue B!" Maureen confirmed.

"But what about Collins and Angel? Are we going to tell them after Mark, Roger, and Mimi?"

"We won't have to," Maureen said, using the elastic band around her wrist to pull her hair up into a messy bun before grabbing her purse. "I am willing to bet that they are both over at the loft waiting with everyone else for us to call. You know them. They can't stand to be out of the action for a second."

"Good point. Let's motor," Joanne said, pulling her sunglasses out of her purse and following Maureen out the door, closing the apartment door behind her.


	18. Chapter 18: Telling the Bohos, again

**Hey All!!! Thank you so much for all the reviews and answers to my "HELP!" question!! It has been so encouraging and I appreciate it so so much!**

**Chapter writing has slowed down considerably as of the past few weeks. Chapters 18-20 have been squeezed out drop by agonizing drop, but we are getting it done. I know what I want to happen in the story, but it's been very hard for me to get it to look good on paper and be happy with it, but I'm determined. **

**Here is Chapter 18! Hope you enjoy!**

Chapter 18

"What is taking them so long? They said they'd call as soon as the doctor's office called them." Mimi whined, pacing the floor behind the couch at the loft.

'Maybe they got bad news and aren't in a real big hurry to call, Meems," Angel answered from the chair across the room.

"I know, but I want to know what's going on.' Mimi whined even more, jumping up and down like a 3 year old about to throw a tantrum.

"You and everyone else!" Collins replied, perched atop the stainless steel table in the kitchen. "Now Mimi, you know I love you, but so help me Christ, if you don't sit down and shut up, I'm going to have a kill you and that's just all there is to it!"

"Collins, how many times have I told you? No murdering in the loft!" Mark joked as her sat Indian style on the window seat next to the fire escape.

"Yeah, what he said!" Roger chimed in from the couch as he lightly strummed his guitar. Mimi rolled her eyes as she flopped down next to Roger.

"It really has been a long time though," Angel lightly spoke up. "You don't really think they got bad news again, do you? Oh God, I hope not. I don't know if I could handle that. I can only imagine what it would be like for Mo and Jo."

"That really would suck! I'd hate for them to have to do this all over again," Mark said, nervously popping his knuckles.

"Okay, let's just not talk about this. We are getting ourselves all stressed out. Let's just calm down and try to focus on something else. A watched phone never rings anyway."

_RING……_

Everyone looked in shock at the phone. "Collins, that phone totally made you look like an ass!" Roger giggled.

"Shut up!" Collins yelled, throwing a dish towel at Roger.

_RING……_

"Don't tell me you guys are going to screen this call too! You know it's them!" Angel groaned.

"Hey, we're late on rent again. It could be Benny. You can never be too careful!" Roger stated.

_RING……_

"Oh for the love of Pete!" Mimi stood up to grab the phone, but Roger pulled her back down on the couch.

"Roger, get off me! Let me get the-" Roger put his hand over Mimi's mouth and she licked his hand.

_RING………_

"Oh, nasty!! Mimi, you're disgusting!" Roger wiped his hand on Mimi's shirt.

_SPEAK……_

"Shut up, you two!!" Mark hissed.

_"Hey assholes, could you come unlock the door and let the pregnant chick in please?"_ a voice came from the answering machine as there was a simultaneous pounding on the door.

"Pregnant?" everyone said in unison, looking around at each other in disbelief before bursting towards the door, tripping over one another to try to get there first. Collins managed to push his way to the front of the pack and fling the door open to reveal a smiling Maureen and Joanne standing outside the door, Joanne's cellular phone still up to Maureen's ear.

Everyone was still trying to push past Collins in the doorway, but he held his arms up in the door frame in an attempt to keep everyone else back. "Pregnant?" he asked, locking eyes with Maureen as she lowered the phone from her ear.

Her eyes began to well up with tears again. "Pregnant!" she shrugged.

Collins lunged for her, taking her into a tight embrace, then reaching out with his right arm, pulling Joanne in too.

"Oh my God. You guys are gonna be mammas," Collins said softly so that only the girls could hear. "This is so cool!"

"Quit hogging the mommies!!" Angel squawked, pulling on Collins's shirt. "We need hugs too!

Collins kissed both girls on the cheek before releasing his grip on them. The girls were them bombarded with hugs from everyone. A chorus of "Oh my God"s and "You're kidding"s and "Congratulations" were heard among the group.

"Well, are we going to stand out in the hallway all day or can we come in?" Maureen said after everyone had gotten a hug.

"Oh jeez, yeah, come on in!" Mark said, ushering everyone back into the loft and over to the living area.

"So everything is going well?" Mimi asked, plopping down on the coffee table as Maureen and Joanne sat on the couch.

"Well, we guess so. They don't really know that yet," Joann explained as everyone else grabbed a seat. "All they know is that as of right now, she's pregnant. In two weeks we go back to Dr. Judd's office and they'll do an ultrasound and confirm the pregnancy."

"So yeah, we're not really home free yet, okay guys. I'm only two weeks pregnant so just remember that a lot can happen in the next few weeks. I just don't want you guys to be really, really disappointed if something should-" Collins interrupted Maureen before she could finish.

"Stop! Don't even talk like that. It's not a possibility. It's not an option. It's just not, so don't even think that. Everything is going to be fine."

Maureen smiled at her friend's positive attitude. "Right. Everything is going to be fine." She wanted so badly to believe it, but she knew that anything could happen, especially in the first 3 months. She remembered how heart breaking it was to be told that she wasn't pregnant the first time so she at least wanted to be prepared if something were to happen this time.

"Okay, stand up and show off the pregnant belly!" Mark said, grabbing his camera.

"Ahhh…I've already been through this with Joanne. The baby is like the size of a cookie crumb. I don't even have a pooch yet!" Maureen groaned.

"I know, but won't it be cool to have footage of yourself from now through the end of this little adventure so you can look back and watch yourself grow?"

"Trust me, I'm going to see it first hand. I don't need footage."

"Okay, apparently you thought I was asking……that's cute," Mark said, winding his camera. "Well, I'm not asking. I'm telling, so get your pregnant ass up and show off the belly, pronto!"

"C'mon, baby! Since when are you not willing to show off your sexy bod?" Joanne chirped.

"Since I realized that in a few months, it's not going to be sexy anymore!" Maureen growled, getting to her feet and standing so that Mark could get a shot of her profile.

"Alright, today is June 16th, 1992 and Maureen is two weeks pregnant," Mark narrated as she walked around Maureen, shooting her from every possible angle. "Okay, lift the shirt." Maureen sighed and rolled her eyes. "Lift it, Missy!" Maureen huffed as she relented and pulled her tank top up just below her rib cage.

"Awww," Angel and Mimi chimed looking at one another.

"Jeez O'Pete, there's not even anything there!" Maureen screeched, throwing her hands out and looking down at her still smooth abs.

"Yeah, but pretty soon there will be," Angel snickered, reaching out and patting Maureen's bare tummy.

"Alright, this news is awesome and there is only one thing to do when we get awesome news!" Roger shouted over Angel and Mimi's giggles and Maureen exasperated sighs. Everyone smiled at on another, each knowing what they did when they got awesome news.

"The Life!" everyone shouted in unison.

"We gotta celebrate!" Roger said.

Everyone packed up and walked the few blocks down to the café, laughing and joking the whole way. When they arrived they ordered their usuals, except for Maureen and Joanne. They shocked the waiter when, for the very first time, they ordered two iced teas.

**TCB...**

**Okay, I thought I'd take this opportunity to ask you guys if there is anything you'd like to see a happen in one of the chapters. I have some ideas, (we are gonna tackle morning sickness, hormones, maturnity clothes, etc) but I'd like to know some of yours. I'm not saying that I'll necessarily use them all, but I just need to get my creative juices flowing again so let me hear 'em if you got 'em. **

**Also, how far should I take this story? I mean, I'm obviously going to get us through the birth of the baby, but I'm not sure where to go from there, so just let me hear some of what you guys are thinking, if you don't mind. THANKS!!!**


	19. Chapter 19: Night Time Discussion

**You guys are awesome!! Keep those reviews and ideas coming!!**

**Man, I have really been struggling with chapters lately. I used to be really far ahead and was able to crank out at least a chapter a day, but now things have really slowed down. Every chapter is a fight, but I'm still trying to do my best to get you guys chapters as frequently as possible, so just hang tough with me and I'm hoping this writer's block passes**

**Here's Chapter 19! Hope you enjoy it.**

Chapter 19

"So when are we going to start really house hunting?" Maureen asked, nuzzling her head under Joanne's chin as they snuggled in bed.

"Well, we need to get a real estate agent and have him be on the look out for places in our price range in neighborhoods we like." Joanne answered.

"Just promise me you won't call Benny," Maureen said, raising herself off Joanne's chest to look her in the face.

"Okay, okay, I promise. No Benny!"

"Pinky promise me!" Maureen stuck out her pinky.

Joanne rolled her eyes. "Maureen, I told you I won't call-"

"Pinky promise!" Maureen interrupted through clenched teeth, sticking her pinky right in Joanne's face.

"Oh for pity's sake, I Pinky Promise, I will not call Benny!" Joanne squalled out in frustration as she hooked her pinky around Maureen's.

"Thanks, Pookie!" Maureen flashed a cheesy smile and squinted her eyes before laying her head back on Joanne's chest.

Both were silent for a few minutes.

"Pookie, you still awake?" Maureen asked.

"Nope," Joanne answered sarcastically.

Maureen rolled her eyes. "Pookie, I've been thinking..."

"You've been thinking a lot lately. Manhattan must be putting something in our water," Joanne said, jokingly poking Maureen in the ribs.

"Shut up, I'm serious," Maureen said, sitting up a little and flicking Joanne on the knuckle.

"Ow! That hurt!" Joanne said, chuckling a little as she pulled her hand away and shook it.

"Well, serves you right! Anyway, as I was saying," she continued as she snuggled back onto Joanne's chest, "I've been thinking that I think I'd like to have a midwife take care of me and the baby instead of just some obstetrician."

"A midwife?" Joanne asked, a little surprised. "Don't they deliver babies at home? You don't want to have the baby at home, do you?" Joanne could already feel her blood pressure start to rise with the thought of a homebirth.

"N-no!" Maureen raised herself up once more and sat Indian style so she could look at Joanne. "I mean, we wouldn't have to. A lot of midwives do deliver babies at home, but some have their own birthing centers where they do prenatal appointment and deliver babies. Some even work right in the hospitals."

"So we could have a midwife, but still have the baby in a hospital?" Joanne asked, feeling herself start to calm.

"Absolutely, I just think I would really like to have a natural childbirth."

"Wait," Joanne said, with a snicker as she pushed herself up into an upright position, "A natural childbirth? As in no drugs? This coming from the woman who cried like a little girl when she got splinter in her finger last summer?"

"Shut up!" Maureen screeched, smacking Joanne on the thigh. "That's different."

"How is that different?"

Maureen hurriedly tried to think. "Well……it just is, okay!" she said, crossing her arms across her chest, obviously frustrated.

"Sweetie, if you want to have a natural childbirth, I think that's great," Joanne said, gently rubbing Maureen's elbow. "All studies show it's good for the baby and the mother. If that's what you want, then I'll support you in it. I just wanted to make sure this is really what you want."

"Well, it is," Maureen said, still pouting a little.

"Okay then, a midwife and natural childbirth it is." Joanne leaned in and kissed Maureen on the cheek before burrowing back under the covers, pulling them up under her arms. Maureen slowly smiled a crooked little smile before cuddling back on Joanne's chest.

"Well, since we're talking about things we've been thinking about, I'll spill a little something that has been rolling around in my head a bit," Joanne said, wrapping her arms around Maureen's shoulders.

"Shoot…"

"Well, I was thinking it would be cool if we didn't find out the sex of the baby," Joanne confessed.

"Really?" Maureen asked, looking upward at Joanne.

"Yeah!"

"Like seriously?" She sat up once more, looking down at Joanne in disbelief.

"Uh…like…yeah! What's the big deal?"

"Miss Anal Retentive? Miss Control Freak? Miss Always Be Prepared, wants to be surprised? You do realize that it would throw a serious wrench in our baby planning?"

"Well, if you don't want to do it, I guess it's not that big of a-"

"No! I think it's an awesome idea," Maureen interrupted. "I have always said that if I got pregnant I didn't want to know if it was a boy or a girl, but I assumed you would just have to know, so I figured that idea would have to be tossed."

"Well, I'm not saying it's going to be easy. I'll certainly have to fight my inner anal retentive, but I think there are very few real surprises in life."

"Am I going to have to get this in writing so I can whip it out in a few months when you are just dying to know and trying to talk me into finding out?"

"No. Here, I'll even pinky promise you!" Joanne said, hooking her pinky around Maureen's. "I, Joanne Rene Jefferson, do solemnly pinky promise you, Maureen Grace Johnson, to let the sex of our baby remain a mystery until the day of his or her birth."

"Okay, I am so going to hold you to that!" Maureen said, pointing her index finger in Joanne's face.

"Oh, will you just lay down and shut your yap?" Joanne joked, wrapping her arm around Maureen's hips and pulling her into a horizontal position on the bed.

"Hey, easy on the goods! This is a working uterus now," Maureen said, pointing to her belly. "I can't have you grabbing and pulling and tugging around on me like this."

"Oh, I'm so so sa-wee," Joanne said in an overly patronizing tone. "Is Baby okay?" She snuggled down close to Maureen's belly and placed her hand on top.

"Yeah, I think Baby's okay," Maureen said, smiling as she laid her hand next to Joanne's.

"Hey, Baby," Joanne spoke inches away from the bare skin of Maureen's tummy The sensation of Joanne's warm breath made Maureen laugh silently. "This is your Momma Joanne! You be good for your Momma Maureen and don't give her any trouble. And make sure you wave at us tomorrow when Dr. Judd does the ultrasound, okay. We love you!" Joanne concluded the one-sided conversation with a kiss next to Maureen's belly button. She looked up to see Maureen smiling down at her.

"What?" she asked.

"Nothing," Maureen shook her head faintly.

"No, come on, what is it? Why are you looking at me like that?"

"Well, I just didn't think you'd really be into talking to the belly and all that stuff, but I'm really glad you are," Maureen shrugged. Joanne just smiled back. "And, not to mention that the whole hot breath and kiss on the belly thing, it uh…."

"What?" Joanne asked.

"It's kinda getting me hot?" Maureen snickered.

"Reheheheheheally?" Joanne asked, intrigued.

"Really!"

"Well, let see what this does for ya." Joanne slowly started to kiss up Maureen's body, sending shudders up and down her spine. Joanne moved north until she made it to Maureen's lips. When their lips met, Maureen pulled Joanne into a passionate kiss. After a few moments, they pulled away breathlessly.

"You know, this could be one of the last times I'm going to be in mood for a while," Maureen said, running her hand up the back of Joanne's tank top.

"Oh, don't worry, I'll keep myself amused!" Joanne said, kissing behind Maureen's right ear.

"Oh, the way you talk…" Maureen giggled slightly before Joanne's lips enveloped her own again.

**TB...oh you know the drill...**

**Let me know what you think!**


	20. Chapter 20: Last Visit

**Here you go guys!! Enjoy some Chapter 20-ness!!!**

Chapter 20

"Maureen"

Maureen and Joanne looked up from the magazine they had been thumbing through while in the waiting room of Dr. Judd's office to see a familiar face. It was Nurse Zimmerly, only this time she was donning Scooby Doo scrubs.

"Hey, we know you!" Maureen giggled, setting down the magazine.

"I was hoping I'd get to see you guys in here for an OB exam! Guess things went well with that last in vitro, huh?"

"Well, that's what we're here to find out," Joanne said, grabbing her purse.

"Why don't you guys can come on back and we'll get this party started," she smiled back.

The girls followed Nurse Zimmerly back behind the nurses' station where Maureen was weighed and her temperature and blood pressure were taken. They were then led into an exam room and Nurse Zimmerly handed Maureen a one size fits all hospital gown.

"Just put this lovely ensemble on and make yourself cozy up on the table and Dr. Judd should be with you in just a minute." Nurse Zimmerly put Maureen's file in the slot on the door and closed it behind her as she exited.

Maureen began to unbutton her shirt, but stopped suddenly when she saw Joanne casually watching her. "Do you mind?" she asked, emphasizing every word as she pulled the top of her shirt closed.

Joanne looked around at anyone else that Maureen could be talking to, but quickly realized that she and Maureeen were indeed the only ones in the room. "What? Me? You're kidding right? Maureen, how many times have I seen you naked and now all of a sudden you're shy?"

"I just know you can't resist my hot bod and I don't want you to jump me right here in the doctor's office," Maureen said seductively.

Joanne rolled here eyes. "Oh for the love of all things holy, put your goofy little gown on before Dr. J gets in here. I'll do my best to contain myself," she groaned, covering her eyes with her hands.

Maureen giggled and she continued to undress, completely unaware that Joanne was peeking through her fingers and enjoying the view.

There was a knock at the door as Maureen hopped up onto the exam table and they were met by another familiar face. "Hey guys! How've you been?" Dr. Judd asked, entering the room.

"Pretty good," Maureen and Joanne answered in unison.

"Good! Good!" Dr. J said in a chipper tone as she rolled her stool closer to the exam table and had a seat. "You had any morning sickness or anything?" she asked, patting Maureen knee.

"Umm, not yet, but I'm sure that since you've mentioned it I'll start getting sick. Thank you so much for jinxing me."

"Hey, ya know, anytime!" Dr. Judd joked. "Well, what do ya say we see if we can get a look at Baby?" Dr. J said, pulling the ultrasound machine from the corner of the room. Maureen and Joanne both smiled at one another. "Maureen, I'll just have you lay back and put your feet up in the stirrups."

"Stirrups? Why stirrups? I didn't know you had to go….down under! I thought with an ultrasound you just moved the little thing around on my stomach," Maureen questioned.

"Well, in a few weeks we will, but right now, the baby is so tiny that the only way we can get a picture is to go, well, as you put it…down under," Dr. J explained.

"Oh, now she tells me," Maureen sighed, throwing her hands in the air and laying back on the exam table. Joanne got up from her seat in the corner to stand next to Maureen.

"It's not going to be bad. I promise!" Dr. Judd said as she positioned herself at Maureen's feet. "Just try to relax."

After some uncomfortable faces from Maureen, the blank ultrasound monitor came alive and within a few moments a tiny, gray, bean shape could be seen. "Alright, you see that little thing right there…the little peanut looking thing?" Dr. Judd asked, pointing to the shape on the screen. Both girls nodded and gripped each other closer, their mouths agape. "That's your baby."

Joanne pressed her cheek next to Maureen's and stared in wonder at the little bean on the screen. "No way!" Maureen said in awe, her eyes becoming wet. "That's our baby? Oh my God! I never thought a peanut could be so precious!" she said, looking over at Joanne, who just smiled, still staring at the screen and trying to hold back tears. "Jo, that's our baby!" Maureen said, grabbing Joanne's chin and kissing her sweetly on the lips.

Dr. Judd pointed to a small pulsing area. "And this little thing moving right here in the middle……that's the heart."

"Will we get to hear the heart beat?" Maureen asked.

"Well, not quite yet. The heart is so small that even our best amplifiers can't pick up the sound waves, but next time, I promise." Dr. Judd said. "Now, what do you say we get a copy of Baby's first picture?"

After printing out a picture of their little Peanut, Dr. Judd finished the ultrasound. "So, everything looks good so far?" Maureen asked, taking her feet out of the stirrups and sitting up.

"Better than good, everything looks great!" said Dr. Judd, throwing her rubbing gloves in the trash can. "As good as we could possibly hope. Just remember, you're still very early in your pregnancy and there's always the possibility that-"

"-we could lose the baby?" Maureen said, finishing the sentence.

"Yes……but we have absolutely no reason to believe you will," Dr. Judd explained, placing a reassuring hand on Maureen's. "I just always make sure parents are aware of the fact that seeing that little heart beat doesn't necessarily mean they are home free, but once we get into your second trimester the chance of a miscarriage drop considerably."

Both girls nodded in acknowledgment.

"So are there any questions that you guys have?" Dr. Judd asked.

"Well, actually, there is," Maureen started. "I know that you are supposed to refer us to an obstetrician today, but I was just wondering if maybe you knew of a midwife you could refer us to instead. I'd really like to try to take a more natural approach."

"Absolutely! I know a few different midwives who I'm sure would be more than happy to take you. I'm guessing you would like to have someone relatively close to your apartment?" Dr. Judd asked.

"Well, that's another thing," Joanne said, joining the conversation. "We are in the process of house hunting. We'd like to get out of the city before the baby is born, but we just really aren't sure exactly when it's going to happen or where we are going to end up." Dr. Judd smiled slightly as Joanne spoke. "I know, I know, I'm sure this totally throws a wrench in where to send us."

"Actually," Dr. Judd said, "You just made it really, really easy. There is one midwife in particular, her name is Kate Helms, and she's great; probably one of the best in the north east. She's a midwife at a birth center that works in conjunction with St. Anthony's Hospital which isn't too far from you now. (A/N: I don't know NY so that is completely made up) And she is also willing to do some home visits and even a home birth if you so choose, so it would be no problem if you guys move a little ways away."

"Cool! And you think she'll be able to take us?" Maureen said.

"We'll, I know a patient that her and I shared just had her baby about a week ago so I'd be willing to bet she's ready to take on a new patient. I'll call her myself as soon as you guys leave and I'll make sure our receptionist gets you her number as well."

"That's terrific!" Joanne said.

"So is there anything else? Anymore question?" asked Dr. Judd.

"Is this the last time we are going to see you?" Maureen asked.

"Yeah, after this, are we done with seeing you?" Joanne chimed in.

"Well, until you guys decide to try for Baby Number Two, yeah, I'm pretty much done with being your doctor."

Maureen and Joanne we obviously saddened by the fact that Dr. Sheryl Judd would no longer be their doctor. She had seen them though so much over the past few months.

"Oh come on, don't be sad. You guys absolutely have to keep in touch and let me know how you're doing! Maybe we can even get together for lunch or something sometime. And by God, you had better bring that baby by when he or she gets here, you hear me?" Dr. Judd said, pointing her finger in Maureen's face.

Maureen forced a smile through her pout, looking up at Dr. Judd. "You can bet on it."

"Definitely!" Joanne confirmed.

"Alright, Maureen, why don't you get dressed and I'll meet you guys outside, mmkay," Dr. Judd said, as she reached for the door handle.

Within a few minutes, Maureen was dressed and both girls stood hand in hand in the hallway next to Dr. Judd.

"Listen, we just wanted to say, thank you!" Joanne said. "We uh, quite literally, could not have done this without you."

Maureen put her hand on Dr. Judd's arm. "And you've been so great through this whole thing and you've always been there and always been encouraging and-". Before Maureen could finish, her emotions took over and her voice caught in the back of her throat. She covered her mouth with her hand and tried to blink away the tears forming in her eyes.

"We just really can't thank you enough," Joanne said, trying to finish the sentence as she wrapped her arm around a weepy Maureen.

"Well you're very welcome. It has truly been a pleasure working with you. You've been a ton of fun and you are going to make great mommies." Joanne and Maureen both smiled sheepish smiles. "Come here." Dr. Judd opened her arms and pulled both girls into a hug.

"Maureen, you take care of yourself and that baby. Remember, once it gets here, it'll be all about the baby all the time so milk the pregnancy thing for as long as you can." Maureen chuckled as Dr. J then turned to Joanne. "And Joanne, there are going to be times over these next 9 months that you are going to feel completely helpless, but don't worry. Everything is going to be okay! And anything Maureen screams at you during labor means nothing! Remember that!"

"Will do", Joanne answered.

"Hey, I wasn't kidding about lunch sometime, okay. Be in touch." Dr. Judd spoke in a louder tone as the girls turned and made their way to the door. "I'll see ya around."

"Bye, Dr. J", Joanne answered, turning back to wave as she reached for the door that led out into the waiting room.

"See ya," Maureen waved as well as she followed Joanne out the door.

When the door had shut behind them, Maureen wrapped both her arms around Joanne's arm and laid her head on Jo's shoulder. "I'm gonna miss ya chick," Maureen said with a sigh.

Joanne sighed heavily as well. "Me too, but we're moving on to new things. We'll just have to see if the Kate Helms is as great as Dr. J says she is."

**TBC...**


	21. Chapter 21: Early August Morning

Chapter 21

_Beep…Beep…Beep…_

Joanne rolled over sleepily to turn off the alarm clock. Taking a deep breath and stretching her arms over her head as she rolled back over, expecting to find Maureen lying beside her. However, all she found was bare sheets. It wasn't until she sat up that she noticed the light gleaming from under the bathroom door in the hall way.

Jo rubbed her eyes as she threw back the covers and got to her feet. She walked quietly to the bathroom door and knocked gently. "Hey Baby, you in there?" She slowly turned the knob and slid the door open. Peering around the door she found Maureen sitting on the bathroom floor, her knees pulled up to her chest and her head resting on the edge of the tub. Her body and face were wet with perspiration and her hair pulled into a very messy bun. Joanne was taken aback at how pastey Maureen looked.

"Oh God, baby? Are you okay?" Joanne kneeled down at Maureen's side, tucking the sweat soaked, stray strands of hair behind her ears.

"I was right," Maureen said weakly, still resting her head on the edge of the tub. "Dr. J mentions morning sickness and before you know it, here it is. Live and in living color."

"When did it start? You were fine last night." Joanne grabbed a wash cloth off the sink, wet it with cool water, and dabbed Maureen's pale face.

"I dunno," Maureen swallowed hard. "I woke up about an hour ago and I was clammy and feeling kinda...blah and then all of a sudden my stomach lurched." Maureen swallowed hard again, appearing to fight a gag. "Jo, I swear, I barely made it to the bathroom. Everything came up."

"Oh, baby." Jo said sympathetically as she continued to dab Maureen's face and attempted to tame the numerous stray hairs that now fell into her eyes and down her neck.

"And it wasn't one of the good pukes either, where you feel so much better afterwards," said Maureen, finally mustering the strength to lift her head from the cold porcelain tub. "My stomach hasn't stopped churning. I didn't go back and lay down because I was afraid if I puked again, I wouldn't make it to the bathroom. Though I'm honestly not sure what else could possibly come up."

"Well here, let's get you back to bed, and I'll get you a trash can just in case." Joanne grabbed Maureen by the arms and helped to pull her gently off the floor. Maureen immediately began to wobble.

"Whoa, I'm spinnin'. I'm spinnin'", she said, grabbing tightly to Joanne with one hand and raising the other to her head. Joanne felt Maureen's legs start to crumple beneath her and saw her face suddenly become paler. She quickly helped lower Maureen back to the floor where she leaned back against the tub.

"Okay, so maybe standing wasn't such a good idea," Joanne said with a sigh. "Do you think you could crawl?"

Maureen took a moment to gather her whits as the spinning room came back into balance. "Yeah, I think so." Maureen slowly got to her hands and knees and shuffled out of the bathroom and down the hall towards the bedroom. Joanne grabbed the trash can and a new trash bag and followed her.

Maureen crawled to the bed, not even bothering to crawl around the bed to her side. She pulled herself up and rolled into bed on Joanne's side. Joanne set the little round trash can in the middle of the bed.

"Can I get you anything? Maybe juice and some crackers to settle your stomach? Joanne asked, tucking Maureen's bare feet under the sheet.

"Well, nothing really sounds good, but I should probably try to eat something, shouldn't I?"

"Okay, I'll be right back." Joanne walked into the kitchen and hit the button on the coffee maker to start it brewing before grabbing the bottle of cran-apple juice out of the fridge and a small glass from the dish drainer. She filled the glass and put the juice back into the fridge. As she did she couldn't help but smile at the ultrasound picture on the freezer door. After grabbing a package of Saltines from the pantry, she grabbed the glass of juice from the counter and headed back into the bedroom.

"Here, baby, try some of-"

"Is that coffee I smell?" Maureen asked, sitting up a bit.

"Uh yeah, you want some-?"

"Turn it off!" Joanne said forcefully, fighting another gag.

"What?" Joanne was confused. "Why?"

"Because the smell. I can't handle it! It's making me sick! You gotta turn it off!" Maureen's stomach churned as she covered her mouth with her hand.

"But Sweetie, it's just coffee. How could that-"

"Jo, I don't know how! Just turn it off, please!!" Maureen's voice was growing more and more urgent.

"Umm…uh…o-okay." Joanne set the juice and crackers down as quickly as she could and started towards the kitchen.

"And open the windows too. You gotta get that smell out of this house!" Maureen called to her as she tried to exit.

Joanne stopped suddenly and slid across the hardwood bedroom floor in her stocking feet. She managed to catch herself on the door frame and come back to open the bedroom windows before dashing to the kitchen. She quickly turned off the coffee maker and dumped both the coffee and the grounds down the garbage disposal. Though the air conditioner was on (A/N: I mean, it is the first week in August) she then opened a few windows in the living room and turned on the ceiling fan before returning to the bedroom.

"Okay, that better?" she said, sitting down on the bed next to Maureen.

"Yeah," Maureen said with a sigh, obviously trying to keep herself from getting sick again. "I hate to have to tell you this, but we cannot have coffee in this house. At least for a while. I don't think Peanut likes coffee," she said, rubbing her belly that had started to pooch out ever so slightly.

"Alright, I'll uh…I'll just get my coffee on the way to work in the morning. No big deal." Joanne patted Maureen's thigh and brushed the long brown locks out of her face. She was starting to get some color back in her face. "It's just strange that it's coffee. I've never heard of the smell of coffee making a pregnant woman sick. Usually it's something like chicken or pork or pasta or-"

"Okay, I get the picture," Maureen interrupted, swallowing hard. She did not want to be thinking about food right now. "Why don't you go get in the shower? You're going to be late for work."

"I'm not going to work. I'm going to stay home with you."

"Why?"

"Because, you're sick. I'm going to stay home and take care of you," Joanne answered, handing Maureen the glass of juice.

Maureen took the glass and swigged a tiny sip. "Sweetie, this isn't like the flu. This is morning sickness. If you stay home with me every time I puke, then I have a feeling that you're going to be missing a lot of work. Morning sickness can sometimes last up through the whole pregnancy."

"But I hate to leave you alone like this. What if you need something?"

"Then I'll call Mark, or Roger, or Meems, or Angel or any of our other regularly unemployed, yet loveable friends," Maureen said, cupping Joanne's cheek in her hand. "I'll be fine. I promise. I'm starting to feel a little better anyway. Go get your shower. Abby won't know what to do if you're late. (a/n: Abby is Joanne's secretary for those keeping track. Remember from Chapter 3?)

Joanne exhaled loudly. "Okay," she said reluctantly.

As the hot water ran down over her, Joanne realized just what Dr. Judd had been talking about a few days ago when she said that there were going to be times when she felt completely helpless. Seeing her girlfriend curled up on the bathroom floor, sick as a dog, is not something she thought she could handle on a daily basis, but she didn't have much of a choice.

"Maur, are you sure you're going to be okay here by yourself?" Joanne yelled from the living room as she gathered some of her files from the coffee table and put them into her briefcase.

"Babe, I'm positive. Go." Maureen yelled as best as she could.

Joanne came back to the bedroom. "Okay, but if you need anything, call me, or Mark, or Mimi, or whatever, okay."

"Promise," Maureen said looking up at Joanne and criss-crossing her heart with her finger.

"Mmkay. Smooch me, Pooch," Joanne said. Maureen puckered her lips out as Joanne leaned down and planted a sweet kiss on them.

"Love you, Pookie."

"Love you, Honey Bear. And you my little Peanut," Joanne said leaning down, eye to naval with Maureen's belly, " you had better be good for Momma today. Don't you be giving her any trouble, you understand?" Maureen giggled as Joanne kissed her stomach.

"Call if you need anything," Joanne said raising her head up.

"Gaahh…you already said that."

"I know. I just wanted to reiterate."

"Well, you have officially reiterated. Now go!" Maureen said, pointing toward the door.

"Kay, bye!"

"Bye, Pook." With that, Joanne finally made it out the door.

Within moments of Joanne leaving, the phone rang. Maureen was still feeling pretty puny and didn't really feel like talking, but snatched the cordless phone from the cradle on the nightstand anyway."

Pushing the "Talk" button, she answered. "Ello?"

"Hi, could I please speak to Maureen or Joanne, please?" came a pleasant sounding, yet unfamiliar voice through the receiver.

"Umm…this is Maureen."

"Hi, Maureen, this is Katelynn Helms. Dr. Judd referred you to my midwifery practice."

It took a moment for the name and situation to register in her still slightly spinning head. "Oh gosh, Dr. Helms, hi!"

"Oh, please," she interrupted, "Call me Kate."

"Oh, sorry, Kate. Yeah, I was actually meaning to call you. It's uh…it's been a rough morning. Got my first bout of morning sickness and-"

"Say no more, I understand completely," Kate said, "No, I just wanted to call and let you know that I'd be more than happy to take you on as a patient."

"Really? Awesome! Dr. Judd spoke very highly of you," Maureen said.

"Gotta love Sheryl," Kate laughed. "She's a great doctor. She spoke pretty highly of you and Joanne as well. She's got me pretty excited about meeting the both of you "

Maureen laughed too. "Well, I guess it's good to know that we all think so highly of one another."

"Yeah!" Kate said, enthusiastically. "So, I'd like to see you for your first check up. Would 2 weeks from today, say around 2 o'clock, be alright?"

"That sounds great!"

"Alright, Maureen I'll see you then."

"Thanks, Kate."

"Bye"

"Buh-bye," Maureen said, using her thumb to end the call.

She leaned back against the headboard of the bed. She was still feeling pretty icky and couldn't help but feel herself get a little bit nervous. True, she had been pregnant for about 5 weeks, but now, with the morning sickness, the call from Kate, and the recent ultrasound at her last visit with Dr. Judd, the reality of the pregnancy was really starting to hit her.

**TBC...**


	22. Chapter 22: Rollercoaster

Top of Form

Chapter 22

_Ring_…_ring….ring_

"Hello?" Maureen answered, grabbing the cordless phone from the coffee table and pressing "Talk".

"Hey Honey bear, what are you doing?"

"Well Sunshine, I just finished praying to the Porcelain God! How are you?" Maureen said in a sickeningly sweet sarcastic tone, running her fingers through her chestnut curls.

"Oh…still feeling pretty yucky?"

"Wow, you're the bright one today. Puking my guts out would usually indicate that yes, I am still feel 'pretty yucky'."

It had been two weeks since Maureen's first bout of morning sickness and its visit hadn't been a short one. She had thrown up at least once everyday since, but was learning to deal with it. The only good thing about it was it came like clock work. You could almost set your watch to her. She woke up every morning, usually before Joanne feeling icky and would usually lose her supper from the night before. But by 8 or 9 am, she usually felt better. Another bout typically hit around noon each day, but she very rarely ever got sick at this point. The day usually wasn't complete until she had another episode of nausea around 8 pm. The nausea wasn't fun, but she knew when it was coming and was able to plan accordingly.

"Okay, well it's 12:30 now and I'm getting ready to leave the office so I should be home within 45 minutes. Think you'll be ready by the time I get there. Our appointment is at 2:00, right?"

"Yeah," Maureen answered.

"Yeah, what? Yeah, you'll be ready or yeah, the appointment is at 2:00?" Joanne questioned.

"Both!" Maureen spat, not in the mood for Joanne's games.

"Well then…on that note, I guess I'll see you in a few minutes. Love you."

"Whatever," Maureen mumbled, hanging up the phone.

Slowly placing the receiver back onto the cradle, Joanne bit the inside of her lower lip and took a deep breath. "She's pregnant with your child. Her hormones are running wild. She can't help it," she whispered to herself as she gathered her things into her brief case. This had become her mantra. It seemed she couldn't do anything right these days. She got chewed out for everything; not putting enough sugar in the Kool-Aid, folding Maureen's jeans incorrectly (she had folded them the same way for 2 1/2 years), sounding too chipper when she answered the phone, putting too much sugar in the Kool-Aid, using Maureen's bath towel to dry her hands, typing too loudly on the computer, "smothering" Maureen on the couch (her foot brushed Maureen's), just to name a few, but she was determined not to snap at her.

As Joanne approach the door on the third floor of the apartment building she took a breath and prepared for the ambush that was likely to occur when she entered the lion's den. She knew that when she walked through the door she was sure to get an earful for laying her toothbrush too close to Maureen's or buying the wrong flavor of Fruit Roll-Ups or something equally as nuts. With one last look to the Heavens, she asked for strength and slid her key into the slot, turned the knob, and slowly opened the door.

"Pookie!!" Maureen squalled, running at Joanne and launching herself into her arms. In the few seconds Joanne had to drop her brief case and purse on the floor and prepare to catch the missile that was Maureen, she notices that her face was red and tear stained. As Maureen threw herself into Joanne's arms Joanne could hear Maureen's sniffling.

Joanne's mind immediately thought the worst. "Maureen, oh God what's wrong?" Joanne asked, wrapping her into a tight embrace and laying her hand on the back of Maureen's head. "Why are you crying? Has something happened? What's happened?"

Maureen spoke as she continued to weep. "I missed you!"

"What?!" Joanne asked, thoroughly confused.

"I just missed you so much, baby! I'm so glad you're home!" Maureen blubbered.

Joanne grabbed Maureen by the shoulder and lifted her from her own now tear soaked shoulder and held her at arms length.

"So there's nothing wrong?

"No, I just really missed you! I hate it when you go to work!" Maureen fell apart again, collapsing on Joanne's shoulder. Joanne tried to process what was happening.

This morning as Maureen got dressed she had bawled Joanne out for using too much fabric softener in the laundry. After 10 straight minutes of screaming about how "every piece of clothing in the fucking house smelled like Snuggle the Bear's ass", Maureen finally told her that she couldn't stand to look at her anymore and that she should hurry up and go to work and "get the hell out of her sight". Needless to say, Joanne had not expected this greeting when she arrived home.

"Ummm….well, it's okay…uh…sweetie. I'm home now. Are you ready to go?" Joanne said, stroking Maureen's hair and not wanting to say anything that would cause the horns to re-emerge from the top of her head.

"Well, I would be, but I can't find my running shoes. I could have sworn I left them under the coffee table the other night and now they are gone. You know, the silver and red Adiadas ones? The ones you bought me…..they are so beautiful." Maureen's voice started to quiver again. "You're so good to me! All you do is give and do for me. I don't deserve you! Why are you with me?" Again, Maureen began to sob, covering her face with her hands.

Joanne's eyes were wide as she pondered how to handle the situation. Timidly, she reached out and patted Maureen's shoulder. "Oh baby…I'm with you because you're the most amazing woman I've ever met and I love you." Maureen smiled a little as Joanne reached out and raised her chin with her knuckle.

"_Oh, a smile. That's good! Keep it up, Jo!_"Joanne thought to herself. "Now I put your shoes in the shoe rack in your closet. Would you like for me to go get them for you?" Joanne asked sweetly.

The smile on Maureen's face faded quickly. "You put my shoes away?"

"Uh...yeah. I thought it would be easier to find them if they were in their proper place," Joanne said.

"Oh, so now you're determining what the proper place for my shit is?" Joanne's eyes grew as she realized they had just made a wrong turn at the intersection of Crazy and Psychotic. "You don't think I can take care of myself." Maureen's voice started to get louder. "'Oh gotta pick up after poor little Maureen. She couldn't find her ass if it wasn't attached to the back of her thighs!' Did you ever think that maybe I left those shoes there for a reason?! Jesus, Joanne! Sometimes you just drive me absolutely ba-fucking-nanas!!!" Maureen shrieked as she as stomped back to the bedroom. "And no, I don't want you to go get them for me! I'll get them my own damn self!" she screamed slamming the bedroom door so hard that the picture of her and Joanne at their commitment ceremony last summer fell from the wall in the hallway and shattered.

Joanne was still standing right in front of the door in the same spot where Maureen had jumped into her arms not 3 minutes ago. She was still trying to figure out how the conversation had changed directions so fast, but she knew that it was pointless to try to figure it out. "Remember, you love her. She's pregnant. Hormones raging. She can't help it. She can't help it," she whispered under her breath as she turned around and opened the apartment door again.

"Okay Honeybear, I'll be in the car waiting. You just come whenever you're ready, mmkay." Joanne yelled sweetly back toward the closed bedroom door as she kicked her briefcase out of the way, picked up her purse, and made her way out into the empty hallway.

"Go to Hell!" Maureen screamed as Joanne closed the door behind her.

"Wow…this could be a long 7 and a half months."

**TBC**


	23. Chapter 23:Meeting Kate REVISED

**Okay, first of all, I have to once again thank all of you for your wonderful reviews! You guys encourage me so much and make me feel so good about what I'm doing and I appreciate it so much! You have no idea!! Please keep them coming!**

**Nextly, for those of you who have lost track, it has now been 7 weeks since Maureen's successful in vitro. (Which in medical terms actually makes her 9 weeks pregnant. Confusing, I know)**

**In this chapter you are going to meet Kate Helms, the midwife. And for those of you who enjoy visual aids, I will provide one now. When I created Kate and was deciding what she would look like I imagined Annabeth Gish. For those of you who don't know who she is you can check out some links to pics of her a my profile. I hope you guys enjoy Chapter 23!**

Chapter 23

Maureen and Joanne hadn't said a word to one another since Maureen had exploded in a fit of rage over the shoes. Joanne had gone down to the car and waited nearly 15 minutes for Maureen to finally come down. As she sat waiting, she knew they would be late, but she also knew that going up and asking Maureen to hurry would not be a wise idea so she decided to call Kate's office instead. Joanne had told her that the traffic was "insane" and that they might be a little late. To Joanne's surprise, Kate wasn't the least bit irritated and said for them to just take their time and get there when they could.

The 20 minute ride to the office was almost unbearable. Maureen had gotten into the car, put her feet on the dash, and cranked the radio up so that even if Joanne could think of something to say, she could not be heard over the blaring music. The tension hung in the air making it almost hard for Joanne to breathe. She spent the entire ride trying to think of something she could say to defuse the situation. As she pulled into the parking lot and found an empty space Joanne knew that she didn't want to walk into the office with this tension and that she had to try to do something. She put the Camry in park, turned off the radio, and grabbed Maureen by the wrist before she had a chance to escape out the passenger door.

"Baby, I'm sorry," Joanne began as Maureen rolled her eyes. "You're right, I've been treating you like a child and I shouldn't have. I was wrong and I apologize. I'm really going to try to do better. Please, let's not stay mad at one another."

Maureen, who was still facing straight ahead in her seat, looked ever so slightly out of the corner of her eyes to glance over at Joanne. "…..so you're not gonna move my shoes anymore?"

"Nope, where ever you leave them, that is where they shall stay. Cross my heart!"

Joanne sat nervously on pins and needles as Maureen sat quietly for a moment. "See….that's all I wanted! Don't put my shit away like I'm a kid! It's my shit! It's not your shit! Understand that maybe I left my shit out for a reason. If I wanted you to move my shit I'd say, 'Hey Jo, will you put my shit away?'"

Joanne couldn't help but crack the smallest smile at how insane this conversation was, but she was just happy that at the moment she wasn't getting screamed at. "Maureen Grace Johnson, I promise you I will not touch your shit!"

"Okay then!" Maureen said happily leaning over the center console and kissing Joanne on the cheek. "Let's do this!" As Maureen hopped out of the car like a happy Gold Retriever, Joanne took a deep relaxing breath and sighed with relief, reached for the door handle, and got out.

Kate's office was right next to St. Anthony's Hospital, but they were amazed at how homey and comfortable it seemed. They check in with the receptionist and had barely touched their butts to the cozy waiting room chairs when a slender, brunette woman in her late thirties appeared at the door that led back to the exam rooms.

"Maureen and Joanne?" the slender woman asked.

"Yes," the girls answered simultaneously and standing back up.

"Hi, I'm Kate," the brunette said, walking across the room and meeting the girls half way. She reached out and shook the hands of both Maureen and Joanne.

"Nice to finally meet you!" Joanne said.

"Ditto! I've been anxious to meet you! Sheryl told me some wonderful things about you," Kate said. Kate was a beautiful woman in her mid-thirties. She had loving brown eyes and a genuinely kind smile. "Why don't you guys come on back and we'll get better acquainted and check and see how the little one is doing," Kate said, ushering the girls through the door that led to the exam rooms.

On the way back, Maureen was weighed and had her blood pressure and temperature taken. She was then given a clear plastic cup and shown to the bathroom. After she had filled her cup Kate led her back to an exam room where Joanne was already seated.

'Alright so first of all, how have you been feeling?" Kate asked as Maureen took a seat on the exam table.

"Well, no one ever told me that morning sickness could happen at anytime of the day. Calling it morning sickness is like false advertising or something," Maureen grumbled.

"Preaching to the choir, sister!" Kate laughed. "When I was pregnant with my oldest, I was sick all the time!"

"So you have children of your own?" Joanne asked.

"Yep! Two little boys!" Kate nodded, smiling.

"Oh wow! Bet your hands are full!"

"How old?" Maureen chimed in.

"Milo is 6 and Kelby is 3 and let me tell ya, they are my little wild banshees. We've already made a couple trips to the emergency room this year. Kelby has dove head first off the top of his bunk bed on more than one occasion because he is convinced he can fly. Needless to say he is not allowed to watch Batman anymore."

"We're gonna end up with a boy. I just know it!" Joanne said laughed nervously and slapping Maureen's thigh, obviously a little nervous at the thought of one day having to take their own three year old son to the ER after a failed flying attempt.

Kate laughed. "Oh, but they are so worth it! So much fun! They keep me on my toes. Anyway, back to that morning sickness, Maureen."

Maureen told her about how she had been sick everyday for the past 2 weeks, how the smell of coffee made he want to jump out of her skin, and about how her boobs had never been so sore in her life, not even after she pierced her nipple. Kate asked about mood swings, but Maureen claimed it hadn't been a problem. The look on Joanne's face told Kate otherwise.

"Well, enough chatter. Let's see if we can get a look at this little one," Kate said, getting up and laying the exam table, as well as Maureen, back into a laying position and helping Maureen wiggle her shirt up, exposing her tummy. She poked and prodded and felt around on Maureen's belly and then measured from her sternum to just above her pubic bone with a tape measure. "Measuring your belly throughout the pregnancy is going to help us determine how the baby is growing and developing," Kate explained as she charted the measurement, "Plus it's pretty fun to watch that number start to climb here in the next few weeks".

"Okay, now for the fun part!" Kate said, rolling up the tape measure and pulling the ultrasound machine over to the exam table.

"You don't have to go….down under, do ya?" Maureen asked cautiously, motioning to her nether region.

"Nope!" Kate said, grabbing a bottle from the ultrasound cart and squirting some clear jelly on Maureen's bare belly.

"Oh thank God!" Maureen sighed raising her hands and resting them on top of her head to keep them out of Kate's way. Joanne stood by Maureen's side and her hand found its way to Maureen's as she watched Kate place the probe on Maureen stomach.

"Okay, Little Bit, where are you?" Kate said, moving the probe around in search of the tiny baby. "Ah ha!! There you are!" she exclaimed as a tiny shape appeared on the screen. The shape however, did not look like the tiny peanut they had seen three weeks earlier. The shape on the screen now actually looked like a baby. They could see it arms and little legs beginning to take shape.

"Oh my gosh! Our Peanut doesn't look like just a peanut anymore!" Maureen said, in awe.

"It actually looks like a baby!" Joanne added.

"Yeah, there's an arm," Kate explained as she pointed to the screen, "And there's a little leg."

"Can you tell if it's a boy or a girl yet?" Joanne asked. As soon as the words escaped her lips she received a glare from Maureen.

"I thought we had decided we weren't going to find out if the baby was a boy or a girl!" Maureen said.

"We aren't. I was just curious if she could tell!" Joanne said shrugging.

"Well it doesn't matter anyway because no, I couldn't tell at this point even if you wanted me to. All the 'stuff' hasn't developed fully yet. Most doctors can't tell until at least the fourth or fifth month of pregnancy," Kate explained.

"Good, so she won't even be tempted to ask for a least a few more months," Maureen said, cracking a sly grin up at Joanne.

"Oh, you guys haven't got to hear the heartbeat yet, have you?" Kate asked.

"No, last time Dr. Judd said the heart was too small and couldn't be heard yet," Joanne answered.

"Well, it should be big enough now. Let's see," Kate said, pressing a button on the ultrasound machine and moving the probe around searching for the heartbeat.

The girls had expected to hear the rhythmic sound of their baby's heartbeat immediately, but there was silence as Kate continued to move the probe around. After a few moments, Maureen could feel her own heart start to pound. Joanne swallowed hard, trying to remain calm.

"Come on, Little One," Kate said, still searching.

As a few more moments passed Maureen could feel herself start to panic. "Is something wrong? Where is it? Why can't you find it?" she asked anxiously, grabbing hold of Joanne's arm.

"Sometimes you just have to find just the right spot," Kate said, focusing her attention on the screen.

Joanne's mind began to race. The "M" word that she had fought to keep out of her mind for the past month now exploded in her brain. "_Oh God, what if she doesn't find it? What if we lost it?"_


	24. Chapter 24:Relief

Chapter 24

Hot tears of panic welled in Maureen's eyes. "Oh God, this can't be happening," she said, her voice becoming frantic as she grabbed Joanne's arm tighter. "Jo, tell me this can't be happening. Kate, please don't let this happen!"

"Come on, Peanut……come on, Baby." Joanne's voice trembled, her eyes burning into the screen.

Suddenly the room was filled with the most beautiful noise the girls had ever heard.

"There you are!" Kate said, having finally found the baby's heartbeat. "Sometimes you just have to find the right angle."

Maureen collapsed back against the exam table. Overwhelmed with relief, she covered her face with her hands and tried to regain her composure. .

"So the baby's okay?" Joanne asked unable to hold back a relieved laugh as she heard their baby's heartbeat for the first time.

"Little Bit is fine. Just made me work a little harder than I'd like, that's all," Kate smiled, quite relieved herself. "You guys may have a little trouble maker on your hands here."

"Grreeeaat," Maureen groaned, pulling her hands away from her face, "Just what we need." Joanne leaned down and kissed Maureen's forehead and wiped away the few tears that had begun to emerge. "God, that's the most amazing sound I've ever heard. It's like, somehow, this makes it more real. There's really a little person alive in there," Maureen said, looking down at her belly, then back up at the screen.

"A very healthy little person is very much alive in there," Kate said as she froze a few pictures of the baby on the screen and began to print them out for Maureen and Joanne to take home.

"So everything is really okay?" Maureen asked as Kate wiped the jelly off her stomach.

"Everything is perfect! Couldn't be better!" Kate reassured her.

"Thank God!" both girls sighed in unison.

"Okay, so let's talk a little about what you guys wanted as far as the pregnancy and birth goes," Kate asked, raising the head of the exam table up into a sitting position. "Why did you decide you wanted a midwife instead of just a regular OB/GYN?"

"Well, I don't want it to be so….well….medical…ized," Maureen said. "I just wanna go with a more natural route, ya know."

"I totally understand, and I'm going to do my very best to make sure that this pregnancy and birth are an experience that you can look back on and be happy about."

"Great!"

After concluding the exam, Kate, Joanne, and Maureen stood in the hall next to the reception area.

"Alright, I'll have Blair schedule you an appointment in about three weeks," Kate said, placing a hand on the shoulder of a quiet, young looking, red-headed girl in teal scrubs. "By the way, this is Blair. She helps at the reception desk and is also my assistant/apprentice," Kate explained.

Both girls waved at Blair, who shyly waved back.

"Oh and you also need to head down to the lab and have some blood drawn," Kate said, handing Maureen a blood work order.

"Aww man, blood work? For what?" Maureen groaned.

"Just routine stuff for your first visit. No big deal."

"Yeah, easy for you to say. If I never see another hypodermic needle it'll be way too soon," Maureen said, remembering all the fertility shots and blood work she had to have done in her attempt to get pregnant.

After saying their good-byes to Kate, making an appointment with Blair, and getting Maureen's blood drawn at another building at the hospital, the girls were on their way home. Suddenly Joanne's cell phone began to ring. Maureen retrieved the phone from Joanne's purse and handed it to her.

"This is Joanne," she said, answering the phone. "Oh hi, Nathan."

Maureen's ears immediately perked up at the sound of this name. Nathan Arson was the name of their real estate agent. They had hired him a few weeks back to start helping them look for houses.

"Really? So you found a few places? That's great!...we'd love to come look at them…… Today?...uh let me check." Joanne lowered the phone to her shoulder. "Honeybear, do we have any plans for the rest of the day? Nathan would like for us to come look at a few houses right outside of town. What should I tell him?"

"Tell him 'absolutely'!!" Maureen exclaimed. "We'll be there as soon as we can."

"Nathan? Yeah, we'll be there as soon as we can."

**TBC...Scurred ya, didn't I? Sorry! Had to keep it interesting!**

**Can anyone guess where I got the name Nathan Arson. If you can't figure it out then I don't think I want you reading my RENT fic anymore! LOL! Kidding! But seriously, it's not hard. **

**Also, thought I'd provide another visual aide to those who would like one. When I dreamed up Blair I imagined Amy Davidson from 8 Simple Rules. You can check out a link to some pic of her on my profile!"**


	25. Chapter 25: Home?

**Okay, kids. We have skipped ahead a few weeks in the story. Maureen is 13 weeks pregnant (11 weeks since the in vitro). **

**In this chapter there are some fun hidden references. I'll give a huge shout out to anyone who can get them all so be on the look out. Hint: Do your Idina Menzel homework!**

**By the way, for those of you who didn't get the Nathan Arson thing...try adding a "JO" to the first name and an "L" to the last. Get it now? I thought so.**

**Anywho, enjoy!**

Chapter 25

"Baby, we're supposed to meet Nathan in half an hour. We need to get going," Joanne called back from the kitchen to the bedroom where Maureen was getting dressed.

"I'm comin', I'm comin'," Maureen huffed, hopping into the kitchen on one leg trying to jam her foot into her white canvas slip-ons.

"Sweetie, didn't you wear those pants yesterday? And the day before?" Joanne asked, looking Maureen up and down and noticing her denim overalls.

"Shut up," Maureen said, hanging her head a little in embarrassment. "They're the only jeans that don't make me feel like I'm being cut in half."

"Well, baby, maybe it's time you thought about-"

"AAH! Don't even say it!" Maureen said cutting Joanne off as she stomped her foot on the hard wood floor, finally able to slide her heel into her stubborn shoe. "I am not getting maternity clothes! I will not make myself look like a circus tent! I just won't! It's not going to happen."

"And just what do you plan on doing for the next 6 months? Eventually these bad boys are start getting tight too," Joanne said, tugging on the straps of Maureen's overalls that were already starting to get a little snug around her belly.

"I'll live in sweat pants," Maureen shot back.

"For six months? Baby, that's a long time to be wearing nothing but sweat pants."

"I dunno. We'll figure something out! I don't feel like talking about it right now. Plus, like you said, we need to get going. Meeting Nathan in half an hour," she said in a sing-songy voice, tapping her watch and grabbing her purse. "We don't wanna be late."

Joanne rolled her eyes.

It was now early September and Maureen was in her second trimester. They had already been back for their second appointment with Kate and things were still looking good. The baby was even more cooperative this time. Kate was able to find the heartbeat right away and had estimated the baby's due date at March 4.

Maureen's morning/afternoon/evening sickness had gotten considerably better. She was getting her energy back and was starting to return to a somewhat normal routine that was, for the most part, vomit free. Her hormones had also begun to balance themselves out a little and Joanne was able to start using fabric softener in the laundry again. Though this is not to say that Maureen didn't have a swing now and then, but that had been the norm even before she was pregnant.

Over the past month they had gone with Nathan numerous times to look at houses and though they had seen many beautiful homes in fantastic neighborhoods and great school districts, none of them quite felt like home.

"So what's the story on this house?" Maureen asked as they drove out of the city, following the directions Nathan had given them.

"It's about 10 years old," Joanne began as she merged into highway traffic. "The family who lives there now has been there for about 5. They say they love it, but they have three children who are getting older and they just need more room."

"I just hope it's not tore all to hell with three kids having lived there for five years," Maureen said, flipping down the visor to keep the late-morning sun out of her eyes.

"No, actually Nathan said they have kept it in really great shape. It's three bedrooms, two and a half baths, finished basement with an office and a bar, an in-ground swimming pool and big fenced-in back yard. Just what we're looking for."

"Eh, well see," Maureen said shrugging. Maureen had let herself get excited every time they had looked at a house and ended up being disappointed every time so she decided she was going in with no expectations this time.

After a 30 minute drive from their apartment, they pulled into a cozy, yet beautiful subdivision: Amory Heights. Most of the houses were big, but not extravagantly so. They were all well kept, with neatly mowed lawns. A wide, smooth side walk outlined the road. It was your typical suburban neighborhood and though Maureen had vowed, not so many years ago, that she'd never be a suburbanite, she stared in awe of the family sitcom-like community that rolled past the passenger side window.

"Wow, nice eh?" Joanne asked, gazing out the front windshield at the suburban landscape that sprawled out in front of the Camry. "What is the address again?"

"530 Syosset Circle," Maureen said, reading from the creased piece of legal pad paper in her lap.

"I think this is it right up here….."Joanne said, pointing to a beautiful brick home on the cul-de-sac just up the street. "Yeah, there's Nathan's car. This is it." She pulled into the drive way behind Nathan's BMW.

Maureen's heart immediately leapt when she saw the house. She didn't know exactly why, but this house felt different. She looked at the house and could imagine herself and Joanne living there; raising a family there.

As they parked the car in the driveway and got out they saw Nathan coming down the walk to meet them. "Howdy," he said chipperly, extending his hand.

"Hello," Joanne replied, extending her hand to shake his. "Hope you haven't been waiting too long."

"No, no, I've only been here a few minutes. You're right on time," Nathan gushed slightly, shaking Maureen's hand as well. "The Martins have been expecting you."

"You mean the family is here?" Maureen asked, as Nathan started to make his way back down the walk and motioned for them to follow.

"Yeah. I've told them all about you." Maureen nervously swallowed hard. She had always been proud of her sexuality and of her relationship with Joanne, but she was a little nervous about how this suburban family would accept and act around the two lesbians who were looking to possibly buy their home.

However, when Nathan opened the door and ushered her and Joanne inside, Maureen's tense attitude seemed to mellow as she found genuinely happy, smiling faces looking back at her. A tall, dark headed man, probably in his mid 30's stood just inside the entrance way. Next to him stood a petite blonde woman of about the same age. The woman held a little girl of about 2 in her arms. As they stepped awkwardly inside and glanced around, Maureen also noticed two young boys playing checkers in the living room floor. She guessed them to be about 10 and 8.

"Maureen and Joanne, this is Stu and Helene Martin," Nathan said, stepping between the two pairs of people. Maureen and Joanne smiled awkwardly as they each shook Stu and Helene's hands.

"It's nice to meet you," Joanne said politely. "You have a beautiful home."

"Thank you," Stu said. "It's great to meet you two! Nathan has told us some wonderful things about you."

Maureen noticed the little girl in Helene's arm looking both at herself and Joanne shyly, becoming aware of the fact that she did not know the two women standing in front of her. "Hi there," Maureen said quietly, smiling sweetly at her.

"Can you say 'hi' to Maureen and Joanne, Cara?" Helene asked, bouncing the little ragamuffin girl on her hip. Cara snuggled her nose into Helene's neck, but waved shyly back.

"That's sure is a pretty name," Joanne said, tilting her head to meet the little girl's gaze. Cara smiled timidly.

"A pretty name for a pretty girl," Maureen added.

"Tell them 'thank you', Cara," Helene said, but Cara simply buried her head bashfully into her mother's shoulder.

"Boys, come here and meet Maureen and Joanne," Stu called to the boys in the living room. After finishing their last move, the boys got up and walked to where the group was standing. "These are our boys, Anthony and Adam."

"Hi," the boys answered in unison, obviously wanting to finish their checker game.

"Well, let me show you around," Helene said, leading the girls into the living room.

"Yes, please do," Joanne said, loving what she had seen of the house so far and anxious to see more.

Helene moved from room to room with Cara still on her hip, showing the girls the house and asking friendly questions like how long the two had been together and how Maureen was doing with her pregnancy. Stu followed, smiling quietly, adding tidbits about what bathroom fixtures he had replaced, what shelves he had put up, and what rooms he had painted.

As they followed Helene around the house, Maureen and Joanne fell more and more in love with the house and before the tour was even over, Maureen had her heart set on it. They would share excited looks and smiles as they moved about the house. Every once in a while, Maureen would like a breathy "wow" escape her mouth as she entered a new room. Neither one of them could put their finger on exactly what it was that made the house so beautiful and loveable, though Joanne thought it might be the comfortable, lived-in atmosphere. It just felt like home.

The tour ended in the backyard where the girls marveled at the large patio, the crystal clear, kidney bean shaped pool, and the huge oak tree that towered above them and shaded them from the blazing mid-day sun.

"Well, that's pretty much it," Helene said, using her hand to keep the sun out of her eyes. "To some it may not be much, but it's done us well for a long time."

"It's beautiful!" Joanne chimed, taking in the bright scene around her.

"Well, what do you think?" Nathan asked. He had been following behind them as well throughout the tour, but since Helene had taken over tour guide duties Nathan had remained pretty quiet. So quiet, in fact, the Maureen and Joanne had almost forgotten he was there.

Joanne glanced over at Maureen, raising her eyebrows as if to say, "Yeah, what do you think?" even though she was pretty sure she knew the answer she would get.

"I love it! When can we move in?" Maureen said jokingly, though she really wasn't joking. Everyone laughed.

"I'm thinking we'll definitely be in touch!" Joanne said confidently.

"Fantastic!" Nathan said.

"Great!" Helene said, setting Cara down in the grass.

"It was nice to have met you!" Joanne said, extending her hand to Helene and Stu once more with Maureen following suit. "Thank you so much for showing us around."

"No problem! It was nice to have met you too," Stu said.

"Hope to see you again," Helene added.

"I think you will," Joanne said as Maureen, and herself made their way to the gate that led out to the driveway. Stu held it open as they exited the yardand Helene and Cara stood in the driveway waving as Maureen and Joanne got into their car and left.

"Baby, I want that house! We have to get that house!" Maureen said as they pulled away, her face pressed up against the window as she tried to take in every detail of the house as they passed.

"I know. Me too," Joanne said, anxiously gripping the steering wheel. "I really didn't want to sound too eager, but I think I might call Nathan's office as soon as we get back to the city! I don't know what it was about that place…..it just…."

"….felt like home?" Maureen asked smiling.

"Exactly," Joanne said, nodding, "It felt like home."

**TBC...**


	26. Chapter 26: Sleeping For 2 & Snug Pants

**Okay so, here were all the little references from Chap 25 in case you missed them.**

**I used the last name Martin in reference to Jesse L., but that was kinda hard to catch b/c Martin is such a common name**

**530 Syosset Circle- 5/30 is Miss Idina's b-day and Syosset is the neighborhood she grew up in**

**Stu and Helene are the names of her parents**

**Cara is the name of her sister**

**Anthony and Adam- in reference to Rapp and Pascal**

**Also, Amory as in Amory Heights is the town that my cousins Kristina and T live in. Kristina has never seen RENT, but has started reading the fic and loves it so that was a thank you to her! Thanks, Kristi!!**

**Now to the shout outs I promised!! Many people got one or two, but only a few pretty much got them all! OnEtHoUsAnDsWeEtKiSsEs, ****BabyLezzie, and kp0282!!!! Huge "WHAT UPS!" to you guys!! That was awesome!!**

**I'll be out of town for a week starting tonite and I'm not sure how much net access I'll have, but hopfully if all else fails I'll have some good time to write! Hope you guys are still enjoying yourselves. Please keep the reviews coming. They are more appreciated than you could ever know!!**

Chapter 26 (17 weeks pregnant)

_Beep…beep…beep…beep…_

Joanne reached for the alarm clock on the night stand and flipped the switch on the top to "OFF". She rolled onto her back and lay there for a moment, trying to wake up a bit before pushing herself into an upright position. She leaned against the headboard, rubbed her eyes, and looked to her left. There lay Maureen, on her side, the covers pulled up under her chin

"Honeybear, it's time to get up," Joanne said gently, but Maureen stayed put. "Come on Sleeping Beauty, we gotta meet Nathan at 9."

"Aaaawww," Maureen growled, pulling her pillow over her head. "The only thing worse than getting up early on a weekday is getting up early on a weekend." Joanne could only just make out what she was saying since everything was muffled under the pillow.

"Come on, babe," Joanne egged, tickling Maureen's exposed under arm, "Aren't you excited? The house will be officially ours by the end of the day!"

Maureen swiftly pulled her arm down, making her arm pit inaccessible to Joanne's tickling finger. "Of course I'm excited about the house," she said, pulling the pillow off her head and flinging it across the room, "But I'd be a lot more excited if we closed on the house…say around….noon. You gotta remember, I'm sleeping for two here."

"Yes, how could I forget," Joanne sighed, leaning down to give Maureen a good morning kiss before planting another kiss on her belly and climbing out of bed. "I'll hop in the shower first. You can doze for a few more minutes."

After a quick shower, Joanne emerged from the bathroom in a towel. As she went to the closet to find something to wear, Maureen staggered sleepily into the bathroom. After dressing and putting on some make up Joanne shuffled into the kitchen to scrounge up some breakfast. She put a strawberry Toaster Strudel in the toaster and a mug of water in the microwave to heat up. Since the smell of coffee still made Maureen a little whoosie, Joanne has switched to hot tea in the morning, though she usually got a cup of Joe after arriving at the office.

Jo crossed the room, her Toaster Strudel in one hand, her cup of tea in the other, making her way to the couch to eat her breakfast and watch what she could of the morning news. As she passed the hallway, the bathroom door opened and a stark naked Maureen nonchalantly stepped out. This was not uncommon. In fact, Maureen never took clothes with her into the bathroom when she showered and rarely did she ever wear a towel while strolling from the bathroom to the bedroom. Joanne had grown completely accustomed to this routine, however, today Joanne could not take her eyes off Maureen.

Though Jo had spent many nights the past few months rubbing, and kissing, and talking to Maureen's belly it had been a little while since Joanne had seen Maureen completely naked. Usually she was already gone when Maureen got out of the shower in the morning and there hadn't been any action in the bedroom pretty much since Maureen had gotten pregnant. It wasn't until she saw Maureen, standing unashamed, bedroom door wide open, rummaging through her chest of drawers for a pair of underwear that Jo realized not only how much Maureen's body had changed, but also how sexy she found it.

Maureen felt herself being watched and looked up to find Joanne gazing at her intently from the living room. "What?" she asked, giggling and furrowing her brow.

"Nothing!" Joanne said quickly as if suddenly awakened from a trance, "I just….you're…"

"Fat. Yes, I know! And it only going to-"

"No!" Joanne interrupted. "No, you don't look fat! You look…….beautiful," she smiled.

"Whatever," Maureen said, rolling her eyes. "You don't have to lie."

"Baby, I'm not lying….you look gorgeous," Joanne smiled.

"Oh please! Go eat your Toaster Strudel and shut up!" Maureen said, rolling her eyes again and returning her attention to finding underwear.

Joanne wanted to do much, much more than watch the news and eat her breakfast after seeing her beautifully pregnant girlfriend butt naked, but she wasn't sure if Maureen was even ready for that, not to mention there was no time for hanky panky anyway. They had a big day today. They were meeting with Nathan and the Martins to close on the house in Amory Heights. Over the past month they had haggled a little over the price and had drawn up the paper work. The Martins had already begun packing and by the end of the day, Joanne and Maureen would be the official owners of this little suburban palace. If all went according to plan, they would be moving in next weekend and neither one of them could wait.

Joanne was licking the remnants of Toaster Strudel icing off her fingers when she heard an exasperated moan from the bedroom. "Damn it!"

"Baby, what's the matter?" Joanne called, getting up from the couch to investigate.

"It's official. Nothing in my closet fits me anymore!" Maureen said as Joanne made her way down the hallway and into the bedroom. "Even my overalls are too tight now." Maureen pulled off her pair of trusty overalls, balled them up, and threw them in the floor before flopping down, in bra and under-roos, on the bed.

"Sweetie, I know you don't want to hear this, but I really think we are going to have to start considering maternity clothes," Joanne said, sitting down next to Maureen on the bed.

"I know…..it's just…..maternity clothes are always so frumpy! I already feel fat. I don't want to feel frumpy too!" Maureen whimpered.

"What if we find you some cute ones? We'll scour the city and buy you some cute, non-frumpy maternity clothes." Joanne said, tucking a lock of hair behind Maureen's hear

Maureen sighed heavily. "Fine," she groaned, still not happy about the thought of buying pants with a stretchy belly panel, but she knew she didn't have much of a choice. "But what are we going to do today? I quite literally have nothing to wear and we're supposed to be meeting Nathan and the Martins in an hour!"

"Well, it just so happened that I prepared for just such an occasion," Joanne said, getting up and walking to the closet. After disappearing into the darkness she emerged a few moments later, a plastic shopping bag in hand. "I picked these up the other day," she said, tossing the bag to Maureen.

Maureen flipped the bag over and the contents fell out onto the bed: a pair of maternity jean.

"They are the kind the sit below your belly. I knew you wouldn't like the belly panel ones," Joanne said as Maureen unfolded the pants and held them up in front of her. They were actually kind of cute.

Maureen smiled. "You always take care of me," she said, laying the pants on her lap and looking up a Joanne.

"It's my job!" Joanne smiled back as she kissed Maureen sweetly, "And I wouldn't have it any other way. Now get dressed. We've got go buy ourselves a house."

**TBC!**


	27. Chapter 27: Packing

**I'm back!! Of course, I pretty much had no time to write any new stuff, but I promise I'll get on that asap!**

**I'm honestly not happy with how this chapter came out. It's not my best work, at least in my personal opinion. Everything I wanted to happen happened, but it doesn't flow the way I would have liked. I've tried to change it a few times and only get frustrated so I'm just going to post it and move on. Forgive me if it sucks! **

**Try to enjoy!**

Chapter 27

"Man, I didn't realize just how much stuff we have until we started packing it all up," Joanne said as she wrapped yet another plate in newspaper and put it into the box marked "KITCHEN".

"No shit!" Maureen said, taping up a box of books from the living room. "Something tells me our friends are not going to be happy about moving all this down three flights of stairs tomorrow."

"Well, I talked to the landlord and he said we could use the freight elevator for some of the bigger stuff if we want."

"Great! Now I won't have to think of a nice way of telling Collins, Roger, and Mark that they were going to have to get that entertainment center all the way down to the lobby and out the door via the stairs," Maureen laughed, scooting a dining room chair into the kitchen next to the cabinet. She climbed onto the chair and went to step onto the counter when Joanne looked up from her plates.

"Maureen!! What in the hell are you doing?" she shrieked, jumping up from the floor.

"I'm gonna get the stuff out of the top of the cabinets. What?" Maureen asked, as Joanne grabbed her by the hand and tried to help Maureen off the countertop.

"What? What do you mean 'what'?" Joanne yelled. "You can't be climbing up on the countertops! You're pregnant!"

Maureen was dumbfounded. "I'm pregnant. I'm not handicapped," she said, stepping back onto the floor.

"I know you're not handicapped, sweetie, but what if you fell?"

"I'm not going to fall, Jo."

"Well, no one has the intent of falling, Miss Monkey Girl, but it happens and we're not taking that chance. We've got too much to lose," Joanne said, putting her hand on Maureen's tummy. "You finish packing the plates. I'll do the climbing." She kissed Maureen on the cheek and scaled the cabinet.

"Fine," Maureen sighed. "We're almost out of newspaper. Is there some more in the…whoa…." She stopped suddenly, putting a hand on her belly.

"Sweetie? Sweetie, what's wrong?" Joanne asked, climbing off the counter and walking over to Maureen. "What's the matter?"

Maureen's confused stare turned to a crooked smile and she laughed. "I think I just felt her move," she smiled. "The baby just moved. I felt it!"

"Oh my God, are you serious?" Joanne said, obviously excited.

"Yeah! There it was again!"

"Let me feel!" Joanne squealed, putting her hand next to Maureen's.

"There! Did you feel that?"

"Oh my God, I think so! It was little a little flutter!...Wait a minute," Joanne said, pulling her hand away and looking at Maureen, confused. "Did you just say 'I just felt **her **move'?"

Maureen's eyes widened. "No."

"Yes you did," Joanne said, her eyes narrowing. "You said, 'I think I felt her move'."

Maureen bit her lip and lowered her head. She had promised herself she'd keep her mouth shut, for Joanne's sake, but in the heat of excitement, she had blown it and Joanne was thoroughly confused.

"Maur, do you-….how do you-…..did you-….?

"Breathe, Jo, breath…." Maureen said, putting a hand on Joanne's shoulder.

"Maureen, we promised that we wouldn't find out the sex of the baby until it was born!" Joanne said, her aggravation starting to build. "What, did you go to Kate's office and have her check? Sheesh…and you thought I'd be the one to crack under the pressure."

"Jo, Kate hasn't told me the sex," Maureen said, shaking her head. Joanne was now even more confused.

"Well then how did you-…….."

"Pookie…..I just know," Maureen shrugged.

"What do you mean you just know?" Joanne asked.

"I just know……I guess it's like instinct or something…" Maureen shrugged again. Joanne giggled slightly. "What?" Maureen asked her.

"Nothing….." Joanne said, shaking her head and still fighting the giggles. "It's just cute."

"What's cute?"

"This whole 'maternal instincts' thing."

"What do you mean 'this whole maternal instincts thing'? What? Do you not believe me?" Maureen said, taking her hands off her belly and putting them on her hips.

"Well, Sweetie, come on….you've been pregnant for four months and this is your first baby. I mean, how much 'maternal instinct' could you possibly have?" Joanne asked, barely trying to hide her laughter. "Could this possibly be more wishful thinking than instincts?"

"Jo, I don't know what to call it. And there's no wishful thinking. I don't care what this baby is just as long as it's healthy and happy. I just really feel like this baby is a girl. Yes, there may be the slim possibility that I could be wrong, but I am 99.9 sure this little one is a girl."

"Well, can we have a boy name on stand-by just in case?" Joanne asked wrapping her arms around Maureen's ever growing waist. She thought she'd go ahead and humor Maureen. This wasn't worth getting into a silly argument about. Joanne wasn't really buying the instinct thing, plus ever since Maureen had started showing she had been carrying low and all in front. It was obvious to her that this baby was almost certainly a boy.

"I guess," she sighed, pecking Joanne on the lips. "You know, speaking of names, we really need to start talking about that. March is going to be here before you know it."

"Yeah, we really probably should," Joanne said, returning to the chair and hoisting herself back up onto the counter as Maureen went back to packing the plates. "Let's just throw some out there."

"Mmmkay," Maureen said, wrapping a plate as she pondered. "I've always liked Audra for a girl."

"Eh…" Joanne groaned, scrunching up her nose a little as she pulled things down from the cabinet. "How about Loralie?"

"Eh…" Maureen grunted. "Bailey?"

"Eh….Isabella?"

"Eh…..Rain?"

"What? Are we hippies?...Regan?"

"Wasn't that the little girl's name in The Exorcist?...Riley?

"Are we Irish now?...Sadie?

"We're not naming a dog, Pookie…..Shelby?"

"Eh, too white….Mya?"

"Too black…" Both girls groaned loudly, exasperated.

"Let's try boy names," Joanne suggested.

"What about Radley?" Maureen asked.

Joanne contorted her face a little. "Theodore?"

Maureen snarled her lip. "Alex?"

"Like from Family Ties?...Henry?"

"Do you want him to get beat up?

Both girl sighed heavily again

"Well, this is going beautifully," Joanne sighed, climbing down from the cabinet.

"We should have expected this. We can't even agree on toothpaste! How the hell are we going to agree on a name for our child?"

"What about middle names?"

"All I know is that I want the middle name to mean something," Maureen said, standing up and walking over to Joanne who was sitting on the countertop. "I want it to have some kind of significance."

"Okay, that is one thing we can agree on!"

Maureen smiled slyly. It had been nearly 3 months since her and Jo had had any "fun" together. For the last few months, Maureen just hadn't been in the mood, but for some reason, tonight, she just couldn't stop looking at Joanne. She was ready. More than ready. "I bet I know something else we can both agree on," Maureen said, standing in between Joanne's legs and running her hands down her back.

Joanne cocked her eyebrow. "And what's that?"

Maureen's hands had worked their way down to Joanne's butt. Squeezing it, she pulled Joanne closer. "I think we can both agree that I haven't been myself lately," she said, rubbing her hands up the back of Joanne's shirt and touching her bare skin. "And", she continued, "there hasn't been a lot of action in the bedroom in a long time." Maureen leaned in and kissed down Joanne's neck. "A very…(kiss)…very…(kiss)…very…(kiss)...very long time." Joanne took a satisfied breathe as the release of 3 months of sexual urges surged through her body.

"You would be correct," she said as Maureen continued to shower her body with kisses. Taking Maureen's face in her hands she pulled it level with her own. "So you're sure you're ready for this?"

Maureen smiled slyly again and nodded. "MmmHmmm," she hummed, before pulling Jo into a passionate kiss.

"Thank God!" Joanne yelled, pulling away for a moment before diving back in, digging her fingers into the back of Maureen's brunette curls. She made her hand into a fist, pulling Maureen's hair just hard enough as she leaned in to kiss down Maureen's neck and shoulders.

"I thought you said you could keep yourself amused for those months I wasn't in the mood," Maureen said, sliding Joanne off the countertop and leading her back to the bedroom.

Joanne pulled Maureen into another passionate kiss. Pulling away, breathless once more, she smiled. "I was wrong!"

**TBC...**

**So what do you think? After the girls get moved in I think things are going to start moving faster. I'm going to start skipping larger gaps of time, but we won't miss any of the good stuff. I promise.**


	28. Chapter 28: Moving and a Secret Meeting

**Okay, I'll give a shout out to anyone who can find the Idina reference in this chapter and I'm not giving you any hints this time. You're all on your own.**

Chapter 28

"Okay, I thought you guys were going to have everything packed up and ready to go when we got here this morning," Collins said, packing the last few glasses in the cabinet into a box.

"Well, we were. We just…..uh…..ran out of time," Maureen said, looking over at Joanne and grinning like a Cheshire Cat. Joanne smiled sheepishly back.

"Oh cripes…you guys did it, didn't you?" Mark said, a little disgusted, as he pushed a box from the hallway to the living room, his boots slipping on the hardwood floor as he pushed with all his might.

"Heh heh heh…..yeah….." Maureen said with a growly chuckle. "And it was good! It had been almost 3 months and we really needed it! I mean really, really-"

"Okay, as much as I'd love to hear about this riveting chapter from Tales of the Gay and Expecting, we really have to get this shit loaded up!" Roger said as he taped up the last box in the living room. "I really don't want to be lugging boxes into your obnoxiously huge house in the dark!" Angel and Mimi laughed as they double checked all the cabinets for any stray items.

"Rog, the house really isn't that big," Joanne said as she dust mopped the floor (she was hell-bent on leaving the place spotless).

"Not that big?!" he questioned. "It's like freakin' Buckingham Palace for God sake!"

"Well, when you live in that shit hole you call a loft, a Johnny-On-The-Spot looks like Buckingham Palace!" Maureen squalled. It was a low blow; one that only she could get away with and she knew it.

Roger stood, his mouth agape, starring at Maureen. "…….Ouch," he finally managed. "That was low. I think you took out one of my boys," he said, reaching for his crotch.

"It's okay, babe. I'm sure he'll grow back," Mimi said, fighting a fit of giggles with Angel in the kitchen.

"But if you remember correctly, Queen Maureen," Collins started, "Not only did you live in that 'shit hole", you shared it with 4 broke-ass boys."

"Oh my dear Thomas, how could I forget? However, I got in with Ms. Jefferson here," Maureen said, strutting over to Joanne and wrapping her arms around her waist, "I moved on up to the East Side to a deluxe apartment in the sky!" Maureen clapped her hands obnoxiously as she continued to mercilessly murder the Jefferson's theme. "We finally got a piece of the pie!" she sang melodramatically. Everyone was used to Maureen's drama queen behavior and simply rolled their eyes and continue what they were doing. "And that's not counting the nice piece of pie I got last night!" she said, grabbing a handful of Joanne's right butt cheek.

"Oh God!" everyone groaned in unison.

"Munchkin," Angel said directly at Maureen's poochy belly, "Your Mama is crazy so you can come and stay with me and your Uncle Collins anytime you want, mmmkay." Maureen just rolled her eyes.

"Alrighty, I think that's everything," Collins said as he taped up that last box of stuff. "Now comes the fun part," he said, rubbing his hands together. "Now we get to lug all this down three flights of stairs!" Sarcasm dripped from the comment.

"Actually, Senor Whiney Pants, we don't!" Maureen said, holding up a key attached to a large wooden keychain. "We have the key to the freight elevator! We'll load that bastard up and have this place cleaned out in no time."

"We also ganked a two-wheeler hand cart thingy to help," Joanne added, pointing to a grizzled, yet sturdy-looking hand cart in the corner of the dinning room.

"Okay, first of all, my back and lumbar region thank you profusely," Mark said as he picked up an over-sized box. "And second, wow, you just used the words 'ganked' and 'thingy' in the same sentence. Apparently 3 years with us has started to affect your proper English."

Roger grabbed a set of keys off the kitchen counter and made his way to the door. "I'll go unlock the U-Haul so we can start loading stuff in."

8888888888888

After hours of heavy loading, reloading, and unloading they had finally arrived back at the house at Amory Heights with the last shipment of furniture and boxes. As the boys, Angel, who was not in drag this particular day, (It's so hard to unload a U-Haul in heels, don't ya know) and Joanne unloaded the boxes and furniture from the truck, Maureen and Mimi went about trying to get the kitchen in order since it was the only room where furniture did not need to be moved in.

Mark burst through the door, struggling with what was obviously a very heavy box marked "JO'S LAW BOOKS". Exhausted, his knees buckles beneath him and the box fell forcefully to the floor just inside the entry way. He panted heavily, wiping the sweat from his brow.

"Mark, Pookie, that doesn't go there," Maureen called, peaking her head around the kitchen wall and peering in at him. "Those go down in Jo's office. Downstairs, first door on the left, remember?"

Mark glared back at her as she turned and disappeared back into the kitchen. He wanted to tell her to move this God awful, heavy monstrosity herself, but he knew he couldn't. She was pregnant after all so he bit his lip, taking off his glasses and wiping them with the tail of his shirt. "Yes Kitten! Anything else I can do?"

"No, that should do it!" Maureen called back, oblivious.

Meanwhile, Joanne was attempting to arrange furniture and organize things in the master bedroom when she saw Collins stroll down the hallway back toward the living room after having put yet another box in the guest bedroom. That was where they put everything that they had no idea where else to put for the time being.

Peeking her head out the door she called to him in a loud whisper. she hissed, finally able to grab his attention. He turned and met Joanne's gaze with a look of confusion, asking, "What?" without even opening his mouth. Looking around to make sure no one was around she hurriedly beckoned him with her finger. He moved toward the room and when he was within arms reach Joanne grabbed him and pulled him into the bedroom.

"Why Miss Jefferson, I had no idea," Collins uttered in his trademark deep, romantic voice, leaning in close to Joanne.

"Oh get off me, you fruit!" Joanne spat, pushing Collins away. He chuckled a little, scrunching up his nose and sticking out his tongue slightly. "I need to talk to you," she said, her nervous eyes darting toward the door every few seconds. "I have a surprise for Maureen and I need your help, but no one else can know. I don't know if they can keep their traps shut."

"Ummm….yeah, sure. What's up? What do you need?"

"Alright, here's the deal," Joanne began, taking a deep breath and checking the door once more, "…I bought Maureen a car."

"Holy shit, you're kiddin'!" Collins retorted, his jaw almost hitting the floor.

"I kid not, Thomas," Joanne said smiling.

"Damn, Jo! That's awesome!"

"Well, we're in the 'burbs now. It's not like she can just walk a few blocks or rely on public transportation to get where she needs to be and we certainly can't share my car so I figured it was time she got her own. Especially once the baby gets here."

"So what did you get her?"

Joanne grinned widely with excitement. "A brand new black '93 Toyota 4-Runner, (a/n remember is 'late 92) charcoal gray leather interior. It's hot!"

"Shit! If I marry you will you buy me one?"

"Eh, sure. What the hell," Joanne shrugged.

"So what do you need me to do in all of this?" Collins asked, following Joanne's eyes out to the hallway as she checked to make sure they were still alone.

"Well, I'm supposed to go pick it up in about an hour. I need you to go with me and drive my car back."

"No prob, but what are we going to tell everyone when we leave. What's going to be our alibi?"

"I'll tell them I left a box at the apartment and I need you to help me go get it. And then when we get back, I'll park the truck in the drive-way and you can go in and tell Maureen that I need her out in the garage and she'll come out and there the truck will be."

"Sounds great. I'm definitely in. Man, Mo's gonna shit her drawers! She hasn't had a car since she left Jersey with that red Nissan Centra hatch. Well, actually, she had it for a while after she started at NYU, but then she moved out of the dorms and after a few months of starving in the loft with us and never being able to find a parking spot in all of New York, she sold it and bought an ass-load of Ramen Noodles and her sound equipment."

"Now we've just got to polish up her driving skills. Did I mention that you have to help with that too?"

"Oh, now she tells me," Collins giggled in his low, manly giggle.

"POOKIE!!!" Maureen's voice echoed down the bare walls of the hallway.

"Shit!" Joanne squeaked through clenched teeth. Suddenly, they heard footsteps down the hardwood floor of the hallway. Before they could even move there was a skinny figure in the doorway with a rather confused look on her face.

"She's in here!" Mimi called back down the hall, "And Collins is in here too, Ang. What the hell are you guys doing back here?"

"Contemplating their sexuality," Roger chimed as he appeared behind Mimi in the door frame. "I told you guys you'd re-think this whole 'gay/lesbian' thing one day," he joked.

"Shut up, Roger!" Joanne and Collins said in unison.

Finally Maureen and Angel made it to the doorway and Maureen pushed her way through. "I should have known! My life partner and my best friend, fooling around behind my back!"

"No, Honeybear, it wasn't like that. We were just talking!" Joanne stammered with an anxious tone, her eyes wide with fear. "I promise!"

"Umm…Pookie…..I know. I was just kidding. Calm down," Maureen said with a befuddled smile on her face. Joanne breathed a sigh of relief as she realized Maureen was just joking. "But seriously, what are you guys doing?" she asked, stepping further into the bedroom, her hand resting on her tummy.

"We were just deciding if you should put your armoire on this wall or the one by the window," Collins jumped in.

"Yeah! That's it!" Joanne almost yelled, relieved that Collins had come up with a story. However, her reaction made everyone even more suspicious. "Yes, Col, I think your right. I think the armoire should go on that wall."

Maureen narrowed her eyes and glanced at Angel who was now standing next to her. "You believe 'em, Ang?"

"Not even a teeny, tiny bit," Angel replied, shaking her head (a/n would it be 'his head' since he's not in drag? I'm not sure how that would work? Anywho…).

"You thinkin' what I'm thinkin'?"

"Girl, you know it. They are definitely up to something," Angel answered, crossing her arms over her chest. (Once again, would it be 'his arms over his chest'?)

"You are up to something Ms. Joanne Renee Jefferson and Mr. Thomas Bernard Collins," Maureen said, her hands on her hips as she paced in front of them. "And though I don't quite know what it is at the moment, I WILL figure it out," she said boldly, sticking her right index finger in their faces. "Mark my words."

"Consider them marked," Joanne said, nodding slightly as Collins remained quiet.

"Anyway, we need your expertise in living room," Maureen said, grabbing Joanne's hand and motioning for her and Collins to follow. As they made their way out of the room Collins and Joanne shared a relieved look.

**TBC...does anyone ever read this anymore?**

**Okay, FYI, this chapter is a basically a two parter. Chapter 29 will basically be a continuation of this one and then I'm going to be jumpin' forward a bit to Christmas of '92 (Maureen will be almost 7 months pregnant) so just be prepared. I wanna get this moving along and get this baby here, but we're still going to cover a lot so fear not.**

**Let me know what you think...**


	29. Part II: New Truck and New Bombshell?

**Okay, just when I think you guys can't get any more awesome, you do!! I got 16 reviews on chapter 28! That totally excited me! Thank you guys so so much! And for those of you who didn't catch the Idina reference, it was the red Centra Nissan. During one of her concerts she talks about what she used to drive to all her wedding gigs as a teenager. And as promised, the shout outs!! Baby Lezzie and OnEtHoUsAnDsWeEtKiSsEs, you guys are awesome!!! True Idina Freaks! I commend you!**

**Also, there is some new stuff on my profile about this chapter if you wanna check it out. Hope you enjoy!**

Chapter 29 (18 weeks pregnant)

"Okay, if they were just going to the apartment, they would have been back by now," Maureen said as she wiped out the cabinets and began putting dishes in them. "I wanna know what the hell they are up to."

"Yeah, and they left in an awful big hurry," Mimi added as she sprayed the refrigerator with Lysol Kitchen cleaner. "You got any ideas as to what your sweetie might be up to, Ang?"

"Lord only knows," Angel replied, pulling stuff out of boxes, "Especially with Joanne as his partner in crime."

"I'm tellin' ya they're having a steamy affair," Roger called from the living room as he and Mark attempted to set up the entertainment center. "Mark my words."

"Roger, has anyone ever told you that you the mental capacity of an avocado?" Maureen sneered.

"No, but I hear that the avocado is the most intelligent of all the vegetables, (a/n actually, I think avocados are technically fruits) so I'll take it as a compliment," Roger quirked sarcastically. Everyone rolled their eyes, as usual. "Okay seriously, Mo, I'm sure it's not that big of a deal. If there was something wrong, you know Jo would tell you about it,"

"I know that, but I'm still curious. What the hell is so important that my girlfriend and my best friend are sneaking around having secret meetings in my bedroom and rushing out the door and leaving without an explanation?"

Just then they heard the front door open. "Speak of the devil," Mark said as he saw Collins enter.

"Where the hell have you been? What the hell is going on?" Maureen said, rushing up to Collins and grabbing him by the shoulders. "And where the hell's Jo?" she added noticing that Joanne wasn't with him.

"Calm down, calm down, just give me a minute and all will be revealed," he responded, rubbing her arms. "I promise. Now, I need you to put this on," he said, pulling off the thick woolen sock cap he had been wearing most of the day and handing it to her.

With a puzzled look, Maureen did as Collins had asked. Once she had the hat securely on her head, her low ponytail poking out the back, Collins reached out, unfolded the flap, and pulled the hat down, so that it covered her eyes. "What are you doing, dipshit? I can't see!" she said, trying to pull the hat off

"I know. That's the point," he retorted, grabbing her hands. "Now follow me." He led her gently towards the door, motioning for the rest of the confused and curious bohemians to follow as well.

"Okay…there's a step riiiiight here…..good…..okay, and one more…..alright, I got ya," Collins coaxed, leading Maureen out the front door, off the porch, and along the front walk to the end of the house where the driveway was.

As the rest of the bohemians followed Collins and a blind folded Maureen around the corner of the house they gasped at what they saw what Joanne was standing proudly next to to in the driveway, but Joanne and Collins quickly held their fingers to their lips signaling for them to shut up.

"Aaahh shit!! What's with all the gasping? What in the hell is going on?" Maureen screamed, her voice getting high and squeaky.

Joanne stepped in front of Maureen and grabbed her tenderly by the elbows. Maureen recognized her touch immediately. "Pookie, what the-" Joanne cut her off with a kiss and, without a word, slowly rolled the hat off of Maureen's eyes. "-…hell…is…going…on?" Maureen trailed off as her sight cleared and saw a brand new black '93 Toyota 4-Runner with a big red bow tied on the hood sitting in front of her.

"Surprise," Joanne said quietly, a sly smirk crossing her face.

Maureen was obviously shocked. She gasped a few times, covering her mouth with her hand. "Is that…."

"Yours?" Joanne asked. "Well, why don't you go check out that license plate and tell me."

Maureen glanced around the front of the truck at the white metal plate mounted on the chrome fender. "HUNYBEAR"

"Oh my God, babe…..you're kidding!! This is mine? To keep?" Maureen asked as she walked over to the truck, running her hand along the door.

"You betcha," Joanne answered.

"Oh my God, I love you!" she said, almost launching herself at Joanne and wrapping her arms around her, trying to keep her growing belly out of the way.

"You like it?"

"Are you serious? I love it! Thank you, thank you, thank you!"

"You're welcome, you're welcome, you're welcome! Now get in and let's see how you look!" Releasing Joanne from her embrace, Maureen popped the handle on the door, swung it open, and climbed into the driver's seat. The rest of the crew huddled around the truck, trying to get a good look. Mimi and Angel opened the back door and slid across the leather seats.

Maureen ran her fingers along the charcoal colored dashboard and noticed the CD player. "A CD player? My old Centra hatch didn't even have a tape deck!"

"Check the glove compartment," Joanne said shutting Maureen's door and leaning in through the open window. "There's something in there that I think completes the ensemble."

Maureen leaned over and opened the glove compartment.

"Oaklys?!" Maureen grabbed the case and slid the pair of black sunglasses out into her hand.

"You like 'em?"

"I love 'em! I love the car! I love you! I love everything!" she exclaimed before kissing Joanne. Joanne plucked the sunglasses out of Maureen's hand and gently slid them over Maureen's ears.

"Fire this bad boy up, Mo! Let's take 'er for a spin around the block!" Roger said as he stuck his head in through the open passenger side window.

"Can we, Pook? I know we have a lot of unpacking to do, but can we?"

"Of course! I wouldn't dream of having it any other way," Joanne said. "Everything will still be here when we get back."

"Shot gun!" Roger yelled, popping the passenger door handle.

"Bull shit!" Joanne spat back. "I bought the thing! I get shot gun. Your bohemian ass is going in the hatch." Roger stood blinking back at Joanne, seemingly in shock. She had never spoken to him like that before.

"Yu…yu…you've never talked to me like that before. I….I…..I'm so proud," Roger sniffled, sarcastically tearing up and biting his knuckle.

"Get in the truck," Joanne laughed, pushing Roger toward the back of the 4-Runner.

With Joanne riding shot gun, Collins, Angel, and Mimi in the back seat and Roger and Mark in the hatch, their legs squashed up to their chest, Maureen started the car. Meat Loaf's "Bat Out of Hell" blasted through the CD player. Maureen looked over at Joanne. "This is why I love this woman!" she said, grabbing her cheeks and kissing her before throwing it in reverse and pulling out of the driveway.

The crew drove around the neighborhood and made it through rousing renditions of "Bat Out of Hell", "All Revved Up With No Place To Go", and "Paradise by the Dashboard Light" before getting back to the house. (a/n Okay, seriously, if you've never heard these songs before you are required to check them out before continuing to read my fic! You gotta know your Meat Loaf tunes! Period!)

88888888888888

Late that night after the crew had headed back to the city, Maureen and Joanne lay in bed. The mattress was on the floor protected by a mountainous barrier of boxes. The box with Maureen's pajamas and "bummin' around the house clothes" had gone MIA so she crawled into bed wearing nothing but the sweaty t-shirt she had worn that day. Both girls were probably more than just a little gamey, but they were both so exhausted that showers were out of the question. Not to mention they couldn't remember what box they had put the toiletries in.

Joanne rested her head on Maureen's chest and her hand on her belly. Her eyelids were getting heavy and she could feel herself start to drift off.

"Pookie? You still awake," Maureen asked softly stroking Joanne's shoulder.

"Huh uh," Joanne mumbled sleepily.

"Pookie, I've been thinking."

Joanne groaned. "Babe, every time you say those 4 little words a long conversation usually ensues and I don't know if I'm capable of stringing complete sentences together right now. Can we talk tomorrow?"

"Jo, this has been on my mind for a while and I haven't said anything and I just don't think I can hold back any longer."

"Maur, we'll talk about his first thing tomorrow mm-"

"Jo, I wanna have the baby here," Maureen blurted.

Joanne flew into an upright position. "Say wha? Here? What do you mean 'here'?"

Maureen fiddled with her hair, avoiding eye contact. "Ummm…I mean here. Like….like in our house."

"You want to have the baby at home? You actually want to give birth in this house?"

"Uhhh….yeah."

"Wa-why? Why here? Why can't we just have this baby in a hospital like normal people do? Can't we be normal just this one time? I mean, I was cool with the natural childbirth thing. I was cool with the midwife thing, but this……this is……no. No! I'm saying no!"

"Pookie, why?" Maureen asked, sitting up.

"Because you're not supposed to have babies at home. You're supposed to go to a hospital. I just what people do."

"Sweetie, women have been having babies since the beginning of time. It wasn't until the mid 1900's that women started having babies in hospitals."

"And things can go wrong! Didn't you ever watch Little House on the Prairie?!?!"

"Well, there is always a chance that something could go wrong, but things can go wrong in the hospital just as easily as they can at home."

"Yes, but in a hospital they have medicine and doctors and operations to fix anything that may go wrong. And why are you all of a sudden such an expert?"

"Well, I've been doing a lot of research. I've read some books down at the library and I've talked it Kate and-"

"You mean you've already mentioned this harebrained idea to Kate?"

"Well yeah, I mean, I'm just trying to get all the information I can and she's done, like, a ton of homebirths, ya know. And Jo, she said that having a homebirth is no more dangerous than having a baby at a hospital. Actually, it can be safer at home because the mother feels more comfortable and relaxed. She said that we'd have the hospital here in town on standby and she'd monitor me and the baby through the whole labor and if anything went wrong we could call the hospital and tell them we're coming in and we could be there in 5 minutes."

"I just…I…what if…I mean…" Joanne stammered.

"What, baby?" Maureen asked, taking Joanne's hand in her own.

"I just…I don't know what I'd do if I lost you…or the baby. I mean, what if something happened and we couldn't get you to the hospital in time and I lost one of you…or worse, both of you? I couldn't handle that, Bear."

"Jo, you know that I would never do anything to risk the life of this baby or myself. You know that. And Kate would never do this if she thought there were any type of significant risks and she'll continue to monitor me throughout the pregnancy and if, for whatever reason, she thinks that a homebirth would be a bad idea, she won't let me do it, but this is something I really want to do and I wouldn't even think about if I wasn't completely comfortable with it…I've thought about this for a long time"

Joanne sighed heavily. "I just…I don't know, Bear."

"Well, will you at least think about it? I mean, will you at least talk to Kate?"

She sighed heavily again as she began to get a grip on her emotions. "Of course. I mean what's the harm in thinking about it?"

"Exactly! And I promise if after talking to Kate and doing some research you aren't comfortable with this, I'll have the baby in a hospital. I promise. Deal?"

"Deal," Joanne answered as she lay back down against her pillow. Maureen followed, resting her head on Joanne's chest.

"I'm sorry I got so flustered," Joanne said after a few moments. "I should have been more calm and respectful and I'm sorry."

"It's okay. I understand. I mean, I know it's kind of a scary thing to think about and I probably could have chosen a better time to spring it on you."

"Yeah, you probably could have," Joanne chuckled, "But I promise, we'll talk about it and I'll talk to Kate and read some books and stuff, alright."

"Thanks, Pook," Maureen said, snuggling close to Joanne and letting her droopy, tired eyes close.

A few long, sleepy moments passed. "Jo?"

"Hmm?" she answered, barely awake.

"I love you."

Joanne smiled drowsily. "I love you too."

"Thanks for always taking care of me."

Joanne pulled Maureen closer and softly kissed the top of her head. "It's my pleasure, Princess."

**Okay, so now were a shooting ahead to Christmas. I have some cool stuff planned for this chapter and have been anxious to start this for a long time. I hope to have it up asap!**


	30. Chapter 30: And it's beginning to snow!

**Okay, so are you guys ready for an uber chapter? Seriously, it's a tad lengthy. I was going to split this into a two-part chapter, but decided, "What they hey?" You can handle 3,819 words...give or take. If not, read it in installments.**

**So, turn on some Christmas music, grab some eggnog, sit back, relax, and enjoy a very Boho Christmas!**

Chapter 30

"Wow, it's really starting to come down out there," Joanne commented to herself as she looked out the kitchen window at the powdery white snow that had already started to accumulate. She scraped her freshly baked Christmas cookies off the baking sheet and onto a plate before stirring the pan of green beans on the stovetop.

"Oh the weather outside is frightful, but the fire is so delightful," Maureen sang as she strolled through the living room and into the kitchen, her belly proceeding her. "And since we've no place to go, Let it snow, let it snow, let it- Oh cookies!!" She scampered across the kitchen, grabbed a cookie from the plate, and went to take a bite.

"Freeze, Chunky Butt!" Joanne said forcefully, pointing at Maureen with her wooden spoon. Maureen froze, the sugar cookie little more than an inch from her wide open trap. "Drop it!" She released her grip on the cookie and it fell back onto the plate. "Step away from the cookies and no one gets hurt."

Maureen jutted out her lower lip. "But Pookie….Peanut's hungry," she whimpered, rubbing her belly.

"We're going to be eating dinner in a few minutes, as soon as the crew gets here."

"But Pookie, she's hungry right now. And she wants a cookie," she responded, her lip still puckered out.

"Well I'm starting the tough love early. _He_ can have cookies after dinner," she said, smooching Maureen on the lips then leaning down to kiss her belly.

Maureen sighed heavily and made one last futile grab for a cookie as Joanne pulled the plate way. "Why do you still insist on calling her a 'him'? I'm telling you, Jo, it's a girl!"

"Okay, Bear, whatever," Joanne said, turning down the heat on the oven.

"Don't you 'okay, whatever' me, Missy!" Maureen sneered as she set seven plates around the table in the dining room. "Trust me, I know this baby is a girl and when she finally gets here and you realize I was right all along, you are going to feel like a big ass!"

"Yes, Muffin, of course…girl…big ass…right, whatever," Joanne said.

Maureen growled and rolled her eyes as she took a stack of glasses out of the cabinet, but before she could snap back with a snotty remark she heard a small commotion of off key voices coming from outside the front door. Maureen came around the corner of the living room just in time to see the door burst open. "AND A PARTRIDGE IN A PEAR TREE!!!" the Bohos sang, out of breath and off key, as they piled in the door, weighed down with gifts and covered in sloppy, wet snow.

"Merry Christmas!" Maureen said with a giggle as she made her way to the door to greet her friends.

"Merry Christmas!" everyone chirped back as they shook the snow off their coats and out of their hair.

"It's getting crazy out there," Collins said bending down to peck Maureen on the cheek. "They are saying we could have two feet by morning."

"Great!" Maureen said sarcastically as she hugged and smooched everyone else and helped them with their coats and gifts.

"We brought eggnog!" Mark chimed, holding up a paper carton.

"And Stoli," Collins added.

"And Hot Damn...and wine…and some Apple Pucker…and some Smirnoff," Roger said, holding up a paper bag.

"Gee, thanks guys! Get anything I can actually drink?" Maureen groaned looking into the bag.

"There's some virgin eggnog in there too! You didn't really think we'd leave you high and dry now, did ya?" Angel said, patting Maureen's tummy.

"Wow! You guys got this place looking awesome!" Mimi said, looking around and the beautifully decorated house. "Last time we were here you guys still had boxes you hadn't unpacked."

"Yeah, we finally buckled down and got everything unpacked and put away," Maureen said.

"My God, it smells amazing in here!" Angel said, inhaling the rich smells of dinner that hung thick in the air.

"It's on the table, guys!" Joanne called from the dining room. "Come and get it!"

They made their way into the dining room and were almost taken aback at the feast that lay before them. Numerous dishes were sprawled across the Christmas Red table cloth.

"Wow, Jo! This looks amazing," Mark gasped. "What is all this?" he asked as he greeted her with a hug.

"We've got egg plant parmesan, Mediterranean green beans, roasted bell peppers with garlic, basil, and tomatoes, salad like they have at Pasta House complete with pimentos and artichoke hearts, and homemade bread," she said, pointing out each dish on the table as she greeted the rest of her Christmas guests. "And there's pumpkin pie, vanilla ice cream, and cookies for dessert."

"It's almost too pretty to eat!" Mimi said pulling out a chair and sitting down.

"I wouldn't go that far!" Roger retorted as he sat and hurriedly grabbed his fork.

"Did you do all of this all by yourself?" Angel asked.

"No, she did not!" Maureen jumped in. "I helped!"

"Yes, and what would I have done had I not had you to lick the spoon?" Everyone chuckled as they began to pass the various dishes around the table.

"Ha ha ha," Maureen retorted, scratching the side of her nose with her middle finger. Joanne laughed.

8888888888888888

Everyone sat around the dinner table and helped themselves to the banquet Joanne had prepared, laughing, talking, and joking; enjoying each other's company.

"Jo, that was awesome!" Mimi said taking the last swig of wine from her glass.

Mark groaned, pushing his chair away from the table. "Yes! Oh my God, I don't think I've ever been so full in my life."

"Think I'm gonna have to loosen the belt a few notches," Collins grunted rubbing his swollen abdomen.

"I'm so full I could puke?" Roger groaned as his stomach gurgled audibly.

"Thanks for the info, Rog," Maureen said, smacking him in the gut.

He collapsed forward holding his stomach. "Aaaaahhhh man!" He went to return the blow, but stopped himself. Even though Maureen was almost 7 months pregnant he was still get used to the fact that he had to be gentle with her.

After the table was cleared and the food put away, the 7 friends settled back in the living room and allowed themselves time to digest. Roger sat on the hearth of the fireplace and strummed a few carols on his guitar. Mark stretched out on the floor. Collins sat on the papsan chair while Angel and Mimi shared the love seat. Maureen stretched her legs across the couch with her swollen feet stacked on a pillow in Joanne's lap.

Maureen giggled softly as Roger plucked out the beginning chords of "O Holy Night".

"What are you giggling at?" Joanne asked tickling the bottom of Maureen's feet.

"Little Bit must like the music. She hasn't stopped moving since we sat down."

"Can I feel?" Mimi asked.

"Sure!"

Mimi's eye lit up as she scurried across the floor and knelt next to the couch. Maureen took Mimi's hand and placed it on her belly.

"Holy cow!" Mimi laughed, feeling the chaos that was going on inside Maureen. "Was that a foot I just felt?"

"No, I think that was an elbow because her legs are up here and she's always kicking me in the ribs and crowding my lungs," Maureen answered pressing on the top of her stomach.

"Sounds like the little squirt needs some discipline," Roger said, his guitar pick clenched between his teeth as he adjusted his tuning pegs.

"Oh trust me," Joanne jumped in, "the 'We don't hit and/or kick Mommy' lecture has become a normal 'belly talk' ritual around here, but the little munchkin doesn't listen. We've got a future trouble maker incubating in there," Joanne said, pointing to the belly.

"So Mo, you're still convinced it's a girl?" Angel asked as she got up and sat down next to Mimi on the floor, placing her hand between Mimi and Maureen's.

"Yep!" Maureen said confidently. Angel sighed. "What?" Maureen asked.

"I hate to break it to ya, chica, but this little one is a boy."

"Why does everyone keep telling me that?" Maureen asked, exasperated.

"Because it's true. From behind you can't even tell you're pregnant. You're carrying all in front. Trust me, this is a boy!"

"Told ya," Joanne quirked smugly, tickling Maureen's toes.

"Shut up!" Maureen glared at Joanne who snickered under her breath. "I'm the Mom! I know!"

"Sure you do, sweetie. Sure you do," Angel patronized, patting her shoulder.

"Okay, ya know what! Seriously. Screw you! The sex of my child is no longer up for discussion! End of story. Let's open presents!"

"Good idea," Roger said, putting down his guitar and reaching for the presents under the tree, passing them out to their prospective owners. The gifts that they exchanged amongst each other were typically not very big since no one ever really had much money, but they all put lots of thought into each other's gifts, even the boys.

Within minutes the floor was covered with wrapping paper, ribbon, boxes, and gift bags and everyone shuffled through the ankle-deep mess to hug and thank each other for their gifts. As Mark got up to thank Roger for the Prince CD he paused, starring out the window. "Guys, I don't think we're going to make it back to the city tonight."

Everyone collectively looked out the window. It was snowing so falling at a blizzard-like pace and 6 inches had already accumulated in just a few hours.

"Holy goose shit!" Roger hollered. "It's like a whiteout!"

"Yeah, I think it's safe to say you guys are staying here tonight," Joanne said, still gazing at the blizzard-like conditions just outside the window.

"Slumber party!" Maureen squealed.

"Joanne, I know this is a silly question because the chances of it are pretty much slim to none, but I must ask," Roger, putting a hand on her shoulder. "Do you have any sleds?"

Joanne pondered for a moment, a smirk crossing her face. "You're not going to believe this, but I think the Martins left a few in the garage. And I think we have an inner tube that we kept from the beach last summer."

Fifteen minutes later Mimi, Roger, Collins, Angel, and Mark stood, bundled up in the unplowed road outside the house hurling themselves down the hill. (a/n: Keep in mind, it's a blizzard and it's late so no one is driving on the road. Not to mention they live on a cul de sac) Maureen and Joanne stood on the porch watching and laughing as the Bohos goofed off: tackling one another, throwing snowballs, making snow angels.

"Come on, Jo! Come play with us!" Mimi called as Angel took her down from behind and rubbed snow in her hair.

"Oh no! I'll stay here, thank you!" Joanne called back.

"You're such a party pooper!" Angel hollered as she straddled a kicking, screaming Mimi.

"You should go, Jo. I mean, if I wasn't hugely pregnant I'd be out there. Go have fun….for me!" Maureen begged. "You're always saying how much you love the snow."

"I love to look at the snow. Look at, not play in," Joanne corrected. "It's wet and cold and I can never seem to get warmed back up."

As Maureen and Joanne conversed, Joanne hadn't noticed the whispering from her snow-coated, shifty-eyed, bohemian friends, nor had she noticed them sneaking through the yard towards her. Before she realized what was happening, Roger and Mark had scooped her off the porch and were carrying her toward their snow covered playground, Joanne cussing and fighting the whole way.

Maureen couldn't hold back the laughter as she watched Roger and Mark throw her onto the inner tube, pile on top of her, and launch themselves down the hill as Joanne screamed a list of obscenities and threats a mile long.

"Well, Little Mama, you got yourself one hell of a woman," Collins said as he joined Maureen on the porch. Maureen hadn't even noticed that he hadn't gone back to the road with everyone else. "Sometimes you gotta force her to have a little fun, but she's a keeper."

"Yeah, I think so too. She's actually not bad for a rich, yuppie lawyer," Maureen said, brushing the snow off the porch swing and sitting down. Collins brushed off the spot next to her and sat as well.

"So, you and I haven't really had a lot of chance to talk since you moved. How you doing?" Collins asked, using his foot to start the swing rocking back and fourth.

"I'm good. We're good."

"So you like it out here?"

"It's different……it's so quiet, but yeah, I like it."

"And how's the rug rat treatin' ya?" he asked, patting her belly with his big, gloved hand.

Maureen smiled at her best friend's touch. "She's good, besides the rib kicking and the fact that she digs the back of her head into my bladder. I'm sure she'll be a little trouble maker just like her mommy."

"Well, we couldn't have it any other way, now could we?" he laughed. "So how's Jo doing with the whole homebirth thing? Think she'll let you do it?"

"I dunno. She talked to Kate and Kate gave her the names and numbers of a few doctors she could go to for second opinions and that seemed to ease her mind. She's also checked out every pregnancy book in the library. You should see her office. The books are practically stacked to the ceiling."

"Ha! Well, that's Jo for ya," Collins laughed as he watched Joanne tackle Roger and rub his face vigorously in the snow.

"So, we've been talking about names."

"Oh, that sounds like fun? How many times has Joanne slept on the couch during this argument?"

"Well, it wasn't pretty at first. We couldn't agree on anything until we decided that we wanted the middle name to be named for someone. Once we figured out who that someone was we decided that Joanne could pick her 5 favorite boys names and I would pick my 5 favorite girls names and we'd decide from there. Once we figured out middle names and got those 5 first names on paper it came really easily."

"So you officially have names?"

"Yep..."

"Well?" Collins asked getting a little antsy.

"Well, if by some wild chance everyone is right and it happens to be a boy his name will be…" Maureen cracked a smile as she looked up at Collins, "…Miles Thomas."

Collins' brown puppy dog eyes glistened with moisture. "Thomas?"

"Yep…"

"And if everyone is wrong and it's a girl?"

"Averie Colleen. Get it? Colleen? Collins? Close enough, right?"

Collins raised his hand to his mouth. "Mo…that's……wow…I…I'm honored." He could feel his voice and lower lip start to tremble and took a minute to regain his composure. "But why me?"

"Why you?" Maureen asked. "Because you're my best friend. You've seen me through everything. Who drug my drunk ass home after nights of partying and held my hair while I puked and then cleaned me up and put me do bed? Who kept me out of many a bar fight? Who's bailed me out of jail on more than one occasion? Who kicked the shit out of Devon Morris after he slapped me?"

"Hell, without you there probably wouldn't even be a me and Joanne. Who talked some sense into me when I wanted to walk out on her? Who got in my face and told me that the way I was treating her wasn't right? Who made me realize how good I had it? Face it, without you there wouldn't be a baby."

"Wow, I'm good," Collins chuckled wiping his eyes and nose on his sleeve. "So uh…I think I'm gonna quit smoking pot."

"Say whaaaa?" she asked, cocking her eyebrow.

Collins had smoked pot as long as she had known him. He wasn't a pothead by any means, but it was not uncommon to see him enjoying the occasional joint now and again while hanging out with the Bohos. In fact, it hadn't been uncommon for Maureen to share one with him out on the fire escape of the loft when they lived together. However, Joanne had pretty much put a stop to that when she and Maureen started dating. Maureen hadn't touched anything in over 2 years and never planned to again.

"Yeah," he nodded. "I mean, I'm pushin' thirty. I figure it's time to grow up, ya know. Plus…." He fell silent for a moment.

"What?"

"Well, I think about this baby. I mean, this is going to be like my niece or nephew. I'm going to be 'Uncle Collins' and I wanna set an example, ya know. I mean, I think about 16…17…18 years down the road. If I caught this kid tokin' up, I'd kill him." Maureen shot him a look. "….or her. And it's kinda hard to tell a kid, 'Hey, stay sober," when you got a joint tucked behind your ear."

"Col, you're such a sweetheart!" Maureen said, wrapping her arms around his neck and kissing his cheek. He reciprocated the hug, holding her close.

"Man, who would have ever thunk we'd be here like this," Collins said as they released one another. "You committed to one person; a female lawyer no less, pregnant and living in the 'burbs. Me, with the sweetest, sexiest drag queen the world have ever known; both of us employed and sober. (a/n: I've been meaning to put in here somewhere that Maureen has been working at the small community theatre and Collins is teaching at City College of New York, but it was hard to throw it in so let's pretend I did, mmmkay) If NYU could see us now!" They both laughed as Maureen laid her head on Collins' shoulder.

"Okay kids, it's been fun, but can we go in now?" Mark yelled as he trudged back up the hill dragging the inner tube. "I can't feel my toes! It's cold as shit out here!"

"It's not cold as shit out here," Roger corrected. "Shit is much, much warmer."

"Okay, first of all: Roger, you're an idiot," Joanne said. "Second: yes, it's freakin' freezing out here. Let's go in."

With that, Roger, Mimi, Mark, Joanne, and Angel gathered their sleds and traipsed back towards the house.

"What cha guys doing," Angel asked as she stepped up on the porch and knocked the snow off her boots.

"Planning a massive conspiracy against the lot of you," Collins said.

"Great! Who's idea was it to leave the hormonal pregnant chick and the anarchist, genius alone together?" Mark joked.

The 7 friends went back inside where Maureen immediately cranked up the heat. She had stayed pretty warm bundled up on the porch, but she knew her friends had to be frozen. Collins started a fire in the fireplace and the gang huddled around the hearth.

"Let's get the booze. That should warm us up a little," Angel suggested.

"Angel, you my transvestite amigo, are a friggin' genius!," Roger said, grabbing Angel's head and planted a kiss on her forehead. "Hot Damn and Stoli straight out of the bottle should do the trick." He leapt up and retrieved the liquor from the kitchen.

"Oh my gosh, I can't feel my ass! My pants are soaked!" Mimi shivered sitting as close to the fire as humanly possible.

"Mine too!" Mark added, grabbing the Hot Damn from Roger.

"Mine three," Angel, Collins, and Roger said in unison.

"Well, I guess we could throw them in the dryer," Joanne suggested. "I'm sure I could find some pants for Meems and Angel, and I might have something for Mark's skinny ass, but Rog and Collins would be stuck in their under roos until they are dry."

"Or," Collins interjected, "We could all just sit here in our skevies. Nothing says 'Christmas with the family" like getting drunk and getting naked."

"I'm down for that," Mimi said, unbuttoning her blue jeans and sliding them off her hips.

"Me too," said Angel.

"Eh, what the hell," Mark said, fumbling with his belt.

"Woo hoo! Roger's getting naked! Roger's getting naked," Roger sang as he dropped his pants and revealing his Beavis and Butthead boxers.

Joanne took the pile of cold, wet pants and put them in the dryer before putting on a pair of sweats, but was met with a roar of disapproval when she came back into the living room.

"Oh no, this is a family affair!" Mimi argued. "We're all going pantless together! Drop 'em!"

"Oh come on, guys! You're not serious! We all really have to be naked?" Joanne whined.

"Yes, ma'am. And that goes for you too, Senora Pudgy Pants," Angel answered, looking over at Maureen.

"Oh c'mon, guys. You know I'm usually all about nudity; group, public, or otherwise, but I'm fat and pregnant and-"

"That is no excuse, Chubs!" Collins answered. "Now both of you, be good little girls and lose the britches!"

"Fine!" both girls sigh heavily as they removed their pants.

"But just remember, this is unacceptable behavior once the baby gets here," Joanne said, balling up her pants and throwing them in the floor.

Minutes later, they all sat sipping their favorite drinks and munching on Joanne's homemade Christmas cookies in their underwear. Mark had pulled out his video camera.

"December 24, 1992, 11:34 PM Eastern Standard time; the 3 year anniversary of this family all coming together. We sit in Joanne and Maureen big, beautiful new house, drinking cocktails in our underwear as our pants dry."

"Wow, I hadn't even thought about that," Joanne said, sipping her eggnog. "Happy Anniversary, everyone."

"So, this is going to be the last Christmas with just the seven of us," Mimi said staring into her wine glass. "I mean, next year the baby is going to be crawling around."

"Yeah, I was just thinking that," Maureen yawned, scratching her belly.

"It's almost like the end of an era, ya know," Mark said, winding his camera. "Like, a lot of things are going to change once this baby comes."

The room fell quiet for a moment as everyone pondered.

"But I'm looking forward it," Collins said, breaking the silence. "I'm excited."

"Me too," said Mimi. "I mean, I love what we have now, but I'm ready for something or someone to come along and mix it up a little."

"To change!" Angel said, raising her Bahama Mama into the air.

"To growing up!" said Collins.

"To sitting in your skevies with your friends drinking Hot Damn straight out of the bottle on Christmas Eve while it snows like hell outside!" added Roger.

"To family!" smiled Joanne.

"To family!" everyone repeated, clinking their glasses together.

"And any one else who happens to come along," Maureen giggled.

**TBC...**

**Okay, so long, right? Let me know if it was worth it. By the way, we're getting into the homestretch, here! We'll have a baby pretty soon!**


	31. Chapter 31: One Last Hurrah

**Okay, I know I've said "home stretch" a few times, but this time I mean it. This chapter is basically to tie up a few loose ends. Enjoy!**

Chapter 31

Maureen and Joanne had spent the past week getting the baby's room ready. Even though it was only the middle of January and the baby wasn't due until March 4th, they knew that in all reality the baby could pretty much come at anytime and they wanted to have everything ready.

They had already had two baby showers; one thrown by Maureen's family and the other by Joanne's. Between the two showers they had gotten almost everything they had registered for; a play pen, a bouncy seat, a swing, a Diaper Genie, a stroller, changing table, etc. Maureen couldn't believe how much stuff such a tiny person was going to need, but she loved shopping and getting gifts so she wasn't complaining.

To top off all the amazing gifts they had received, Maureen's parents had bought them a rocking chair, while Joanne's parents had bought a crib, both of which were finished in white to match the room which Joanne had spent many painstaking hours painting. (**a/n: check out the picture link on my profile and you'll see what I mean**).

After Joanne had finished painting they had begun to move all the furniture in and hang things on the walls. The room was almost completely done except for the crib which Maureen and Joanne were currently trying to put together. Various wooden rails, metal bars, nuts, and bolts were strewn on the floor and the girls sat smack in the middle of the mess. Joanne diligently tightened a bolt as Maureen looked at the assembly instructions.

"Pook, are you sure that piece fits there?" Maureen asked, studying the instructions then looking back at Joanne's handy work.

"Yes, I'm sure," Joanne said as she continued to tighten the bolts.

"Are you sure? That's not what the diagram says."

Joanne grabbed the instructions out of Maureen's hand. "Sweetie, you're looking at them upside down." She turned the instructions right side up and handed them back to Maureen.

Maureen studied the newly corrected instructions for a moment. "….oh. Well, now this makes sense."

"So Bear, I've been doing a lot of thinking," Joanne said, breaking a few moments of silence.

"Wait a minute…..isn't that my line?" Maureen laughed.

Joanne rolled her eyes. "I'm serious. I've been thinking about this whole homebirth thing. You know how you said that if after doing some research and talking to Kate and some other people, if I didn't feel comfortable with doing this then we'd have the baby in a hospital?"

"Uh huh," Maureen nodded, biting her lip and waiting for the inevitable "no".

"Well, I've decided if you really feel comfortable doing this then it's alright with me. I support you one hundred percent."

Maureen's eyes widened in a state of shock. "Really?

"Really really."

"So….so we can have the baby here? In our house?"

"If that's what you still want, yeah we can have the baby here."

Maureen threw her arms around Joanne. "Oh my gosh, thank you!"

Joanne wrapped her arms around her girlfriend. "Just promise me that if at any point something doesn't feel right, we go to the hospital."

"Oh baby, cross my heart! You don't think I'd put this little girl at risk, do ya?" Maureen said, rubbing now huge belly.

"You know, for someone who is so dead set that this is a girl, you sure did choose a very blue room." Joanne said, looking around the room at the walls she had spent so much time painting.

"Okay, first of all, it's not all blue. There's green and yellow and white in here too. And second, I don't want be one of those parents who plasters their daughters room in pink just because she's a girl. What if she's not a girly girl and doesn't like pink?"

"Well, what if she is?"

"Aha!! So you admit that it's a girl!!" Maureen yelled.

"No, Ms. Smarty Pants, I'm speaking hypothetical here. _If_ this baby happens to be a girl, what if she is a girly girl and wants her room hosed down with Pepto-Bismol?"

"Well, then we'll paint it pink. I just don't want to give her a complex."

"Oh Bear, I think room color is one of the last bullets on the list of things that could give this poor kid a complex."

"Hey!" Maureen whined, punching Joanne jokingly in the shoulder. "What's that supposed to mean? You don't think we'll make good parents?"

"No, baby, I'm kidding! I think we are going to be great parents. This baby is going to be the most loved child on the face of the planet. He or she is just going to be raised quite a bit differently than most kids, ya know. Lesbian parents, Bohemian aunts and uncles…it could get interesting," Joanne said.

"Yeah, but just think of how accepting and understanding she's going to be. At 4 years old she is going to understand and accept more than more adults"

"This is true! She…or he will most likely never have a problem with homosexuals, or artists, or the homeless, or people with HIV."

"But speaking of 'Bohemian aunts and uncles', I've been thinking about them. I uh……I really think I'd like for them to be here……when the baby's born, I mean. I mean….if they want to be. I don't want to force them if they don't want to, but…….do you think they'd wanna be here?"

"Well, Mimi and Angel, I'd say most definitely. Collins, more than likely. Mark and Roger….eh…..I don't know, but it wouldn't hurt to ask."

"So it would be okay with you if they were here?"

"Absolutely! They're family."

"Cool! I was afraid you wouldn't want a lot of people there for this."

"Well, in the past few years I've gotten used to doing things in groups. They have been here through this whole process and honestly, they deserve to there if they so choose."

Maureen reached out to embrace Joanne again. "I'm so glad to hear you say that."

_Two weeks later_

The crew had planned one last get together before the baby was born; one last hurrah before everything changed. They had finished the veggie pizza they had ordered and were sitting around the living room reading Trivial Pursuit questions. (They never actually played the game. They just read the questions)

"The reoccurring characters, the Coneheads, on Saturday Night Live claimed they were from France. What planet did they really originate from?" Collins read from the card.

"Remulak" everyone said in unison, Roger being the only one to answer with any enthusiasm. He always got excited when he knew an answer.

"Correct"

"Guys, this is boring. We've read these questions a million times. We all know the answers." Mimi whined, covering her face with a throw pillow. "Let's play Taboo."

"Oh no," said Joanne, shaking her head. "No Taboo. Last time we played that Maureen nearly killed Roger after he kept buzzing her with that stupid….buzzer thing. Don't you remember having to peel her off him?"

"I sure as Hell remember," said Collins. "When I went to grab her she was wailing on him and I caught an elbow to the lip."

"Hey now, I said I was sorry about that!" Maureen spoke up. "Plus, it's not like I could do much damage to him now. My belly's too big. I couldn't get close enough to throw a punch if I wanted to." Everyone laughed.

"Well, I guess we could have our 'talk'," Joanne said looking over at Maureen.

"Oh yeah! Our talk! I almost forgot about that!"

Their five friends we obviously confused. "What talk?" Mark asked. "What are you talking about? Is something wrong?"

"No, no, no. Nothing's wrong. We just wanted to ask you all something," Joanne replied. "Go ahead, Bear. Ask them."

Maureen sat for a moment, trying to choose her words carefully before beginning. "Well, you guys know you're like family to me...well...us I mean. You have been here for me and Jo through everything and I was just thinking--"

"Dangerous words…" Collins mumbled.

"Shut up!" Maureen retorted as Collins snickered. "I was just thinking that I'd see if maybe you guys wanted to be here when the baby's born."

"Really?" Mimi asked. "You'd want us to be here?"

"Only if you wanna be. I don't want you to feel like you have to be. If you're uncomfortable--"

"I don't know about everyone else, but I'll be there!" Mimi exclaimed. "I've never seen a baby be born before."

"I'll be there with bells on," Angel chimed in.

Maureen moved her gaze over to Collins. "Girl, you know I'd never miss out on an opportunity to watch you scream and cuss. I can always use blackmail."

"Gee thanks, buddy," Maureen said, rolling her eyes.

"I'm just playin' wit chew. You know I'll be there for ya."

Then everyone's gaze fell onto Mark and Roger who were sitting, wide eyed, on the hearth.

"Uhh…do you need like a definitive answer right now?" Mark asked nervously.

"Mark, if you don't want to be there, that's okay," Maureen reassured him. "Both of you. I don't want to make anyone uncomfortable. If you want to come and be there, then that's fine. If you want to come and just sit in the living room and hang until the icky stuff is done, that's fine. If you want to sit at the loft and have us call you when all is said and done, that's fine too. Whatever makes you comfortable."

Mark and Roger exchanged glances. "Well let you know," said Mark.

**TBC...**

**Guess who is on their way...**


	32. Chapter 32: Showtime

**Since you guys were so sweet to give me some fun reviews, I'm rewarding you with Chapter 32!**

Chapter 32

Maureen rolled over and glanced at the bedside clock. "2:09", it glowed in florescent green. She tossed and turned trying desperately to find a comfortable position, but not wake Joanne who was sleeping beside her. However, at 9 months pregnant, there was no such thing as a comfortable position. Her back and legs ached. In the earlier months of her pregnancy, a pillow between her knees at night seemed to help ease the discomfort, but at this point nothing helped. Her feet and ankles were swollen beyond recognition. She had started having Braxton-Hicks contractions a few weeks back. Kate had told her they were her body practicing for the real thing. They weren't really painful, but were incredibly annoying. Two weeks ago the baby had dropped down into her pelvis making it easier for her to breathe, but their little Peanut apparently had long legs because she still frequently felt sharp kicks to her ribs.

The physical aspects of pregnancy were not the only thing that had been keeping her awake. She couldn't help but worry about what was to come. Any day now she was going to be a mother. She was going to be responsible for the life of an innocent, helpless baby. The thought just blew her mind and she couldn't help but let her mind wonder about the what-ifs. _What if I forget to feed her? What if I accidentally leave her somewhere? What if she won't stop crying? What if she gets sick?_ Her mind raced.

She also couldn't help but be nervous about the birth. She had fought and fought and fought with Joanne and had finally convinced her to let her have a homebirth. She knew that birth was a natural thing and that her body was designed to have a baby. She wanted nothing more than for their baby to be born at home away from the drugs and the machines and the doctors. She was completely confident with Kate and knew that she would take excellent care of her and Peanut, and for the first time pretty much since the beginning of her pregnancy she wasn't worried about anything going wrong, but she still got butterflies when she thought about labor. She knew it was going to be intense. She knew it was going to be exhausting. She knew it was going to be painful. She hoped and prayed that she'd have the strength to stick with her plan.

With a heavy sigh, Maureen threw back the covers and attempted to climb out of bed. This had become quite a daunting task in the past few weeks and it took her a few attempts before she was finally able to get to her feet. She readjusted her oversized NIKE t-shirt and black Soffee shorts that rested below her belly. She pulled her hair up into a messy bun and walked over to the window, gazing out at the full moon that lit up the bedroom. Tucking a leg underneath her, she sat down on the window seat and glanced around the room. Her gaze locked on the empty bassinet that sat waiting in the corner. Her hands found their way to her very pregnant belly, as they always did.

"Hey little girl, you have got to come out or I'm going to start charging rent," Maureen giggled in a whisper, looking down at her belly. For the millionth time during her pregnancy she began to try to picture what this little person, who had been resting under heart for 9 months, was going to be like.

"I can't wait to see you and touch you and hold you and kiss you. And we have to prove everybody wrong. You know that everybody still thinks you're a boy, right? I'm the only one who knows and no one believes me. They think my maternal instincts are for shit so you have to come out so they will get off my case, okay." Maureen laughed quietly and rubbed her stomach. As much as she wanted the baby to be born, she had to admit that she was going to miss her belly.

As if sensing that Maureen was gone, Joanne rolled over in bed, her hand blindly searching the bare sheets. After a moment of searching, Joanne sleepily opened her eyes and looked around the room. She rubbed her face as her eyes tried for focus on Maureen who was still sitting in the nook by the bay window.

"Hey baby, what's the matter? Is something wrong?" Joanne asked sleepily, lifting herself up on her elbow.

"No, Pook. I'm fine. I just can't sleep. I'm uncomfortable and achy and my mind is racing…there's just too much going on," Maureen answered softly, looking at her girlfriend before glancing back out the window.

Joanne climbed over the empty side of the bed and joined Maureen at the window. She sat down behind her, wrapping her arms around her waist, resting her chin on Maureen's shoulder and her hands on the belly. Maureen laid her head back on Joanne's shoulder.

"You're so ready to be done, aren't you?" Joanne sweetly kissed Maureen's neck and shoulder.

"Yeah, I'm pretty much over it. Being pregnant had its perks, but it's not fun anymore. Now it's just exhausting and uncomfortable."

"Any day now, babe. Before you know it it's going to happen and we're going to be holding our baby." Joanne nuzzled Maureen's cheek and kissed it.

"I know, but 'before you know it' isn't soon enough because it's not now," Maureen sighed pitifully.

"I know, sweetie. I know." It tore Jo's heart out that her partner was miserable and there was nothing she could do about it. "Come on, let's try to lie down. You need your rest."

Maureen exhaled loudly. "Mmmkay…" Maureen turned to Joanne and kissed her softly before walking back to bed. Joanne lay down behind Maureen, spooning her, and laying her hand on Maureen's tummy.

"I do have to admit that I will miss the belly," Jo confessed, snuggling closer to Maureen.

"I know. Me too, but we'll have something so much better," Maureen smiled, putting her hand on top of Joanne's. Somehow she had found the perfect spot and soon, both girls were sleeping soundly.

888888888888888

Maureen groggily opened her eyes and glanced at the clock. It read 6:47. She was so comfortable except for the fact that she had to pee so badly that her eyes were watering. She had to get up.

She and Joanne were in the exact same position they had been in when they fell asleep and Joanne's arm was still wrapped around her so she gently lifted her hand and set it gingerly back onto the bed, as not to wake Joanne again.

After a moment, she got to her feet and waddled to the bathroom. Leaving the door open, she pulled down her shorts, lowered herself onto the toilet, and did what she needed to do. She grabbed a wade of toilet paper, wiped, and went to stand up, but when she did, she felt something strange: a pop followed by a warm trickle running down her leg. Wait, was she not done peeing? She lowered herself back down onto the toilet and uttered a long "whoa" as she examined the clear fluid that was streaming down her thighs. It took her a moment to realize what had just happened.

"Oh God, my water just broke," she said thought to herself. "My water just broke," she said out loud. Hold on. Was she dreaming? It was so silly, but Maureen reached down and pinched herself on the leg anyway. "Oh jeez……I'm not dreaming. My water really just broke. I'm in labor."

She went to stand, but felt another small gush between her legs so she grabbed a hand towel that was lying on the counter, folded it neatly, and placed it in her underwear before pulling them back up and getting to her feet.

The butterflies in her stomach began to flutter wildly, but she calmly waddled back into the bedroom and sat down next to Joanne on the bed. She laid her index finger on Joanne's forehead and gently rubbed down the bridge of her nose.

"Jojo…wakey wakey," Maureen said in a sing-song voice. At first Joanne swatted sleepily at Maureen's hand before waking with a start.

"What?" Joanne said, obviously still half asleep.

"Baby, it's showtime," Maureen stated clearly. Joanne's eyes widened.

"Huh?"

"My water just broke," Maureen said, enunciating clearly so that Joanne, even in her sleepy state, would be able to hear.

Suddenly it hit Joanne and she flew into a sitting position. "Oh my gosh, are you sure?" Jo asked, still trying to get her wits about her.

"Well, I sure as hell know I'm not peeing my pants so yeah, I'm pretty sure."

"Oh geez! What should we do? Should we call Kate? Have the contractions started yet?"

"Hey, calm down, calm down." Maureen said, taking hold of Jo's shoulders. "We're okay. First of all, we should chill. Second, it probably wouldn't hurt to call Kate. Can you hand me the phone?" Joanne handed her the phone and she dialed Kate's number which she knew by heart.

After a few minutes of talking, Maureen hung up with Kate.

"So…what did she say? What do we do?" Joanne asked, trying to calm down a bit.

"Well, she said for us to try to lay back down and get some rest while things are still pretty mellow and to call her if the contractions get 5 minutes apart or if we have any questions. If she hasn't heard from us in a few hours, she'll call"

"That's probably a good idea. I mean, this could be your last opportunity to- what the heck is in your pants?!?!" Joanne interrupted herself, seeing a bump in Maureen's shorts.

"Oh, it's a towel," Maureen giggled, forgetting about the hand towel she had stuffed into her underwear. "I was kinda gushing everywhere and I didn't want to drip." She lay down on her right side, facing Joanne.

"Gushing? Oh jeez, this really is going to get messy, isn't it?" Jo scrunched up her nose, making a semi-disgusted face.

"Well, one can only hope."

"Man, I'm glad we already put that plastic sheet on the mattress." Both girls chuckled a bit, their eyes fixated on one another until something distracted Joanne's attention to the corner of the room. Maureen turned her head and saw what had grabbed her attention; the bassinet.

She turned back to Joanne. "I know," she whispered, intertwining her fingers with Jo's and kissing the back of her hand.

"That crib has been there for weeks and now……this is probably the last night it's going to be empty." Her eyes began to well up with tears.

"Don't start! I'm sure there is going to be enough of that today!" Maureen scolded, sticking a finger in Joanne's face, trying to hold back tears of her own.

"Sorry," Joanne said, taking a quick breath and blinking her eyes wildly, trying to keep them from starting a stream down her face.

"I love you," Maureen whispered, touching her index finger to the tip of Joanne's nose.

"I love you too." Joanne responded and gently caressed Maureen's lips with her own. "Now close your eyes and try to rest. Peanut is going to be waking you up soon, I'm sure."

Maureen took a relaxing breath and closed her eyes. "Mmmkay…." As relaxed and calm as Maureen seemed, she was quite scared on the inside. She had told herself for 9 months that she could do this, but now here it was. There was no turning back now. The only thing she could do was try to catch a cat nap before the real work began.

Minutes later, both girls had drifted into a light, but peaceful sleep.

**I know, I know...you hate me. But it's okay. You'll get over it.**


	33. Chapter 33: We Got Birth Happening Here!

**Once again guys, awesome with the reviews!! They made me smile so much!! I love you guys!!! **

**Also, I had someone ask who it's possible that Maureen's water broke and then she went back to sleep. Well, it's really not all that uncommon. Typically on TV, when someone's water breaks they immediately going into hard labor which isn't always the case. Some women's contractions don't start for hours after their water breaks. It's just not how we typically see labor potrayed, but it's very much a possibility. One of my favorite shows on TV is A Baby Story and I love to read birth stories online so I've kinda done my research.**

**Anywho, enjoy!**

Chapter 33

Maureen awoke to an uncomfortable tightness in her abdomen. It took a moment for her thoughts to catch up with her and remember what had happened earlier this morning. "Whoa, contraction," she thought to herself. She breathed deeply, in through her nose, out through her mouth, just like Kate had showed her in childbirth class. The contraction was not painful, but it was definitely more powerful than the Braxton-Hicks contractions she had experienced in the previous weeks.

As the contraction ended she let out an audible sigh and glanced at the clock. It was almost 9:30. "Well, that wasn't so bad. One down, 14 million to go," she said quietly, knowing that this was the easy part and that things were going to get a whole lot crazier. She lay in bed, trying her best to catch a few more winks, but within a few minutes, another contraction started, followed minutes later by another and another. She picked up her watch from the night stand and began to time the contractions. "10 minutes apart."

After one of her contractions subsided, she sat up and swung her legs out of bed and got up. It was nearly 10:15 and though she could usually sleep until noon with no problem at all, the contractions made it almost impossible to get comfortable.

"Hey Mama, wake up!" Maureen said, throwing a pair of balled up socks at a still dozing Joanne. "If Little Bit is getting me up, then I'm getting you up!" Joanne rubbed her face as she tried to sit up. She saw Maureen start to pace the floor, her left hand supporting her belly.

"Hey, you," she smiled. "I guess the contractions started?" she asked, still a little groggy.

"Yeah," Maureen breathed.

"Are they bad?" She flung the covers off her legs and stood up.

"No, not yet. Just uncomfortable."

"Well, are you hungry? Do you want anything? What can I do? Should we call Kate?" Jo asked, her voice starting to get anxious as she got to Maureen's side.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. Calm down. Everything's fine. We are still in the way early stages here…..mellow….." Maureen delicately caressed Joanne's cheek with her finger tips. "I think that cantaloupe in the fridge would be nice for breakfast. And a glass of green tea," Maureen said, her contraction subsiding. "It'll give me some energy."

"Cantaloupe! Green tea! Right, you got it!" Joanne turned quickly to head to the kitchen, but Maureen grabbed her by the wrist and spun her back around, looking her straight in the eye.

"Hey……everything is under control, okay. I'm not gonna drop this calf right here in the middle of the floor like a giraffe on the Wild Kingdom or something. I promise," she said, pressing her palms to Joanne's and interlacing their fingers. "I know you're scared. I'm scared too, but we're gonna get through this, okay." She leaned in and kissed Joanne sweetly.

Joanne giggled slightly. "Okay."

"Now, let's go ahead and call Kate and maybe a few others and at least let 'em know what is going on."

At 11:30 Joanne and Maureen set off walking, hand in hand, around their neighborhood. Maureen had called Kate and told her that the contractions had started and were about 9-10 minutes apart. Kate told her she would be in touch and had advised her to walk as much as possible since walking usually speeds things along. It had been an exceptionally mild few days so after breakfast, the girls had set out walking the neighborhood.

Along with Kate they had also called Maureen's parents and sister, Meghan, Joanne's parents, and the Bohos just to let them all know that things were happening and that they'd be in touch.

Both girls had gotten a quick shower before leaving on their walk and were dressed in baggy track pants, hooded sweatshirts, and running shoes. Maureen still had a towel shoved into her underwear to catch the fluid that was still leaking during contractions, causing her pregnant waddle to become even more prevalent and Joanne couldn't help but chuckle behind her back a few times.

At the beginning of their journey, Maureen had been able to walk and speak through contraction with relative ease, but after an hour and a half of walking, she had to stop and breathe through her contractions, leaning on Joanne for support. She knew that most of the neighbors had to be wondering what the hell the "crazy lesbians" were doing, but at this point she didn't care.

When they returned home it was almost 1 and the contractions were now about 8 minutes apart and were starting to become painful. She paced the house and tried to munch on some fruit in between contractions to keep her energy up. Joanne tried to get a few miscellaneous things done around the house, but ran to Maureen's side during a contraction to support her both physically and emotionally.

"Sweetie, why don't you sit down for a bit? I'm worn out just watching you. You haven't sat down since before we went on our walk and we got back an hour ago," Joanne said from the kitchen as she washed the few dishes that were left in the sink. Maureen walked back and fourth between the living room and the dining room, her hands rubbing her back that had now started to ache.

"I tried. I can't handle my contractions as well sitting down. It feels better to…whoa."

Joanne dried her hands with a dish towel and ran to Maureen's side. Maureen immediately grabbed Joanne by the shoulders and rested her head on her chest. Jo could tell this one was the strongest yet. "Breathe, Maur……there ya go. Good girl……good," she said, rubbing her back.

"Wow!" Maureen said raising her head from Joanne's chest once the contraction had subsided. "They're getting stronger."

"And closer together," Joanne said, looking down at her wrist watch, "6 minutes apart."

"I think I'm gonna go get in the tub. Maybe that'll take the edge off for a while and help me relax."

"Good idea. I'll come with you and help you get in and stuff."

The girls walked back down the hall, through the bedroom, and into the master bathroom. Joanne turned on the water and began to fill up the large Jacuzzi tub as Maureen undressed and climbed in. She sat down at first, leaning back against the wall of the tub, but during the next contraction she became acutely aware of the fact that her body still would not tolerate her sitting on her bottom, so she sat up on her knees, resting her forehead and arms on the side of the tub during contractions. In this position she was able to relax. The water helped immensely.

"Sweetie, you don't have to stay in here. I'm fine," Maureen said to Joanne, who was sitting on the lid of the toilet seat and pouring water down Maureen's back. "I can cope with the contractions. Go ahead and finish doing what you were doing. I'm fine."

"Are you sure?"

"Absolutely, I'll be fine. Go ahead. Just leave the door open and I'll holler if I need anything, 'kay," Maureen half smiled, trying to convince Joanne.

"Alright," Joanne said reluctantly. "I'll be back in a few to check on you." She got up and walked back into the kitchen to finish up the dishes, but she had barely turned on the water when she heard Maureen.

"JO!" Joanne turned off the faucet and didn't even bother to dry her hand before bounding back down the hallway, to the bedroom, and through the bathroom door.

"Baby, what's wrong?" Joanne asked, kneeling beside the tub.

Maureen was obviously in the middle of a contraction. Her was body was tense and breathing heavily. "I changed my mind," she said, breathlessly trying to speak and cope with a contraction at the same time. "I don't want you to go. I don't want to be alone. I need you. Please stay with me!" She grabbed the sleeves of Joanne's shirt, gritting her teeth and growling slightly.

"Okay, I'm here. I'm here. I'll stay. It's alright. I'm here. Calm down. Breathe……breathe," she whispered, brushing stray hairs out of Maureen's face and kissing her temple.

"Jo, I'm scared. I mean, everything's okay, but I'm scared. What if I can't do it?"

"You listen to me, Maureen Grace," Joanne said, taking Maureen's face into her hands and lifting it so that Maureen was looking into her eyes. "You are the strongest, bravest woman that I know and there is nothing that you can't do. You can do this, okay. You can do this."

Maureen smiled and rubbed Joanne's elbows. "I love you."

"I love you too."

For over an hour, Joanne didn't leave the bathroom floor, riding out each contraction with Maureen who was still in the tub, holding her hand, and pouring warm water down her back. Her legs were starting to cramp and fall asleep, but she tried to ignore it. She knew that what she was feeling was nothing compared to what Maureen had to be going through and leg cramps were a small price to pay. However, she was quite thankful when Maureen told her that she had to get out of the tub because her feet were now numb and her knees were killing her.

Joanne helped Maureen get out of the tub. She then helped her dry off and get dressed into a sleep shirt that hung just above her knees. Maureen held on to the dresser as she breathed through a few more strong contractions. Joanne stood behind her, rubbing her back to help ease the pressure that was intensifying near her tailbone. As a contraction subsided, they heard the front door open and three familiar voices.

"Knock, knock! Anybody home?" called a deep voice. A small, thankful smile crept onto Maureen's face.

"We're in the bedroom, guys. Come on back" Joanne called back, peeking her head outside the bedroom door and waving Collins, along with a giddy Angel and Mimi, down the hall.

"We're sorry to barge in like this, but these two just couldn't handle being out of the action," Collins said, pointing to the girl on either side of him.

"We were getting really anxious! I hope you don't mind," Angel added.

"No, not at all. I was actually getting ready to call you," Joanne said, hugging Collins.

As he hugged Joanne, Collins looked through the bedroom door and saw Maureen, her hand resting on the small of her back. She smiled at him as best she could. He smiled back as he released Joanne from the embrace.

"Hey, Little Mama. How you doin'?" Collins said, strutting over to Maureen and rubbing her belly.

"Oh, what? Me? I'm just peachy!" she tried to laugh, but Collins could see she was scared and in pain. He took her into his arms and kissed her head.

"I'm really glad you're here," she mumbled into his chest.

Meanwhile, Joanne was greeting Angel and Mimi. "How's she doing?" Angel asked after hugging Joanne.

"She's hanging in there, but things are kind of starting to get a little crazy." Joanne gave Mimi a tight, one armed hug and pressed the side of her chin against Mimi's temple. "Thanks for coming. It'll be kind of nice to have someone else here."

"Hey Chica, how you doing? Is that boy giving you trouble?" Angel said, making her way over to Maureen and pointing at her swollen belly.

"Stop saying that! I'm telling you, it's a girl! She can hear you and you're going to give her a complex!" Maureen argued, hugging Angel, followed by Mimi.

"Whatever, girl. I'm telling you, it's a boy. Mark my words!" Angel disputed.

"We'll just see about….oh God!" Maureen gasped, leaning over the dresser as another contraction began suddenly. Joanne rushed back behind her and rubbed her back. Neither Angel nor Mimi were prepared to see Maureen in so much pain, but while they nervously stepped back, Collins stepped up close to Maureen, offering her his hand. She took it and squeezed, groaning and growling through the contraction.

"It's okay, girl. You can do this. Just relax. Good," he encouraged her, rubbing her neck and shoulders with his free hand. Angel, Mimi, and Joanne were all rather shocked at how Collins had just dove right in, helping to coach Maureen through labor. The only one who wasn't surprised by his actions was Maureen. She had known Collins longer than anyone and knew that he would be there for her through anything, including childbirth.

After the initial shock of seeing Maureen in so much pain, Angel and Mimi were able to help support Maureen. Everyone took turns rubbing her back and holding her hand during contractions and walking through the house with her in between them.

"So are Roger and Mark gonna make an appearance?" Maureen asked in between contractions.

"Well, Roger's band had an audition for a gig at CBGB's and Mark had to shoot some footage in the park, but both said they'd be by later," Collins answered, perched atop the kitchen counter next to Angel.

The whole crew had migrated from the bedroom to the kitchen. Maureen had been pacing between the living room, the dining room, and the kitchen, leaning over whatever she could get her hands on during a contraction; the back of the couch, a dining room chair, the kitchen counter, etc.

"So what about the midwife? Don't you think you ought to call her?" Mimi asked, pacing around the dining room table with Maureen.

"Well, we've talked to her a few times today," Joanne answered, organizing some papers on the edge of the counter, "She said to call when the contractions were 5 minutes apart, or if we felt like things were getting really, really intense."

As Maureen and Mimi entered the kitchen, a contraction began. Maureen stopped and grabbed a hold of the counter top, pressing her forehead onto the cold marble. The contraction quickly intensified and overwhelmed her, bringing her to her knees; literally. Her knees began to buckle and everyone could see her starting to wobble. Knowing that little Mimi wouldn't be able to hold Maureen up by herself, Collins, Angel, and Joanne all darted for her, but it was Collins who got there first, catching her under her arms before her knees gave out.

"I got ya. It's okay, I got ya," he said, lowering her safely to her knees. She groaned loudly through the rest of the contraction.

"Jo, I think now is a good time to call Kate," Maureen panted, looking up at Joanne from the floor as the contraction ended. Joanne nodded silently, grabbed the phone, dialed Kate's phone number, and excused herself to the living room.

"This is Kate!"

"Kate, hey! It's Joanne. Listen, I think things are starting to move here. We're all getting a little nervous." Joanne spoke quietly, pacing the hallway between the living room and the bedroom.

"Getting pretty intense, huh?"

"To say the least. She just had this monster contraction and she hit the floor. I mean, our friend Tom caught her, but her knees just buckle right under her."

"How far apart are the contractions?"

"Umm….I'm thinking about 5….6 minutes…..something like that."

"Can I talk to her for minute?" Kate asked.

"Yeah, hold on just a sec," Joanne answered, making her way back into the living room where Collins and Angel had brought Maureen. Her legs were like Jell-O and they pretty much carried her the whole way, setting her in front of the couch where she laid her arms and head on the cushions.

"Here, baby. Kate wants to talk to you for a minute," Joanne said, kneeling next to Maureen and handing her the phone.

"Ello?" Maureen mumbled into the receiver, too tired to pick her head up off the couch or even enunciate.

"Hey, Beautiful. How ya doin'? I hear things are getting kind of crazy."

"It's getting really weird down there, Kate."

"I know, Kiddo. How are you coping with the contractions?"

"They suck! My tailbone is killing me. I can't even…oh God! Hold on!" she grunted, practically throwing the phone back at Joanne and burying her face into the couch cushion as she tried to make it through yet another contraction. Angel kneeled beside her, offering her hand to hold and tucking stray hairs behind her ears.

Joanne grabbed the phone and put it back up to her ear. "Hey, it's Joanne again."

"I guess she's having a contraction?"

"Oh yeah!"

"Is that her?" Kate asked, hearing loud moans in the background.

"Yeah. She's been making a lot of noise during the contraction."

Kate could tell by Maureen's moans that it probably wouldn't hurt for her to head to the Jefferson-Johnson house. "Okay, Jo, I'm getting ready to walk out the door now. I'll be there in 30 minutes, alright. Just remind her to breathe."

"Okay, we'll see you in a few." Joanne hung up the phone. "She's on her way."

At 5:42 Kate arrived with her assistant, Blair, much to the relief of everyone. Things had really started to get intense. Kate got Maureen to move from the living room to the bedroom with some help from Collins and Joanne. Collins left the room and went to sit with Angel and Mimi in the living room after he had helped get Maureen on the bed so that Kate could check to see how far she had dilated.

"Okay, this is probably going to be pretty uncomfortable, but just try to relax as much as you can," Kate said.

"Oh holy shit!" Maureen squalled out, gritting her teeth and pressing the back of her head into the mattress. "Kate, if you're checking for cavities, I've got a dentist!" Kate, Blair, and Joanne couldn't help but chuckle.

"I know. This isn't fun, but I'll be done in just a second," Kate said, still fighting a chuckle. After a moment she pulled her hand away and rolled the glove off. "You're about 6 centimeter and the baby is nice and low."

"Six? Oh God, please tell me you're kidding!" Maureen whimpered, rolling over on her left side and covering her face with her hand.

"Six is good, Maur. Especially for your first baby. Things always move slow the first time around."

"I know, but six? Six is no good. I'm basically only a little more than half way there," she cried as she dug her face into her pillow.

"Not necessarily. Labor doesn't happen in equal increment. You could go from 6 to 10 in 20 minutes. You never know," Kate patronized, patting Maureen's thigh.

Maureen labored for another 2 hours, moving from kneeling on the floor, to all fours on the bed, to squatting in front of the dresser, to laying on her side on the bed, and back again, and again. Everyone tried to support Maureen as best as they could, telling her how great she was doing and rubbing her back and legs, but labor was taking a toll on her. Her contractions were now 3 minutes apart and she was sure had to be almost completely dilated by now, but when Kate checked her again she found her to still be only 6 centimeters.

"Oh God, I don't know if I can do this anymore!" Maureen was now in tears, scared, worn out, and in pain, as she lay on her side in bed.

"Yes, you can, baby! You're doing so great, just hang in there." Joanne dabbed Maureen's face with a cool wash cloth and wiped the sweat and tear soaked hair from her face.

"Jo, this is so hard! I feel like I'm dying! I don't think I can do this," she sobbed.

Seeing Maureen like this tore Jo's heart out. For the millionth time during this pregnancy, she felt completely helpless. Tears began to well up in her eyes and she cringed as she saw Maureen's body tense with another contraction.

Angel, Mimi, and Collins shared a look from across the room as they saw the toll that the labor was also taking on Joanne. Angel and Mimi went to Maureen to help her through the contraction as Collins grabbed Joanne around the shoulders.

"C'mon, Kiddo. Let's get you some air," she said, leading her towards the door.

"I don't have time for air. I need to stay with her. She needs me!" Joanne said, turning back toward the bed. At this point, Kate intervened, stepping in front of Joanne.

"We can take care of her for a minute. You go take a break and get some air and something to drink or eat and then come back, okay. We'll holler if we need you."

Joanne reluctantly followed Collins out into the hallway and he shut the bedroom door behind them. Once the door was shut, he pulled Joanne into an embrace and Joanne fell apart, sobbing helplessly into his shoulder.

"It's gonna be okay, Jo. Pretty soon the baby is going to be here and this isn't even going to matter anymore."

"I know, it's just that……it's like, she's in agony trying to have our baby and there's nothing I can do. I can't fix it. I can't make it all better. All I can do is watch!" she sobbed.

"But you are doing something. You're hanging in there with her. You're rubbing her back and telling her how great she's doing and how much you love her and right now that's all anybody could do. Just hang in there, Mama. It can't be much longer." He kissed the top of her head.

"Thomas…..I love you. Have I told you that lately?" Joanne said, pulling away and smiling through her tears. Collins smiled, wiped her tears with his thumbs, and kissed her forehead.

About that time they heard a rustling at the door. "Hello?" called a voice.

"Twiddle Dumb and Twiddle Dumber have decided to grace us with their presence," Collins smiled at Joanne. "Hello!" he called back as he and Joanne walked into the living room to find Mark and Roger, wiping their feet at the mat.

"Hey guys, we got a baby yet?" Mark asked, undoing his scarf and hanging it on the hook by the door.

"Not yet," Joanne sighed heavily. A loud moan erupted from the bedroom and Mark and Roger's eyes widened.

"Wow!" Roger stuttered, his mouth agape.

"Is she okay," Mark asked sheepishly.

"She's just having a baby," Collins shrugged. "C'mon. Let's go let her know you're here. It might make her feel a little better." Collins motioned down the hall towards the bedroom.

"Umm….actually we were thinking we'd just hang out here until the little squirt got here," Roger said nervously.

"C'mon guys. I'm not saying you have to be in there for the birth, but at least let her know you're here," Collins argued.

Mark and Roger exchanged nervous glances. "Alright, we'll just say a quick 'hi', then we'll come back out," Mark said reluctantly, following Collins down the hall, with a visibly uneasy Roger in tow. Joanne grabbed a few bottles of water out of the fridge, shoved a small wedge of cantaloupe into her mouth, and followed the boys.

"Awesome, Maureen……breathe through it……good girl," Mimi whispered into Maureen's ear as Collins cracked the bedroom door open. Maureen was on all fours on the bed, her elbows and head resting on the mattress and her butt sticking up in the air.

"Hey, look who's here," Collins said quietly, opening the door to reveal an antsy Mark and Roger, who waved nervously. Everyone waved back except Maureen, who was focusing on a contraction and barely even noticed.

"Maureen, let's go ahead and check you again. I'm thinking you've made some progress," Kate said as the contraction finished.

"On that note, we are going to go back to the living room!" Roger said, grabbing Mark and heading back down the hall.

"Good luck," Mark mouthed to Collins as Roger pulled him down the hall and Collins went back into the bedroom.

Kate examined Maureen and found that she was 8 centimeter dilated, but that wasn't enough for Maureen. As Kate and Joanne helped her get into a kneeling position on the bed the pain and exhaustion and frustration and fear began to overwhelm her. She started to panic.

"I can't do this anymore! I wanna go to the hospital!" she yelled, pounding on the headboard with her fists.

"Sweetie, it'll be just as scary at the hospital. Trust me," Kate assured her, laying a hand on Maureen's back.

"No! I want drugs! I can't do it!" she cried.

"You're already doing it! And you're doing it beautifully! Look at you!" Kate said, trying to keep Maureen calm. "You're getting close, I promise! Just hang on! It won't be much longer." Joanne stroked Maureen's hair and wiped her face with a damp cloth. She didn't know what else to do at this point. Neither did Collins, Mimi, and Angel who clustered together in the corner of the room.

"No! I'm not ready! I don't even think I like babies!! OH GOD!!" She pressed her head firmly against the headboard as her body was wracked with another contraction.

"Let's try another position," Kate suggested. "Maybe that will help. Here Joanne, you sit in the chair and Maureen can kneel down in front of you and put her head in your lap."

They had just made it to the new position when another contraction ripped through Maureen's body. She buried her face in Joanne's lap and held onto the back of Joanne's shirt, wrapping it around her fists and soon stretching it out beyond recognition. Mimi sat down behind Maureen and began rubbing her back like she had so many times throughout the day.

"Stop it, Mimi! I don't like that!" Maureen growled, trying to swat Mimi away.

Mimi looked up at everyone pitifully, her feelings obviously hurt. Kate bent down and helped her up. "It's okay. She didn't mean anything by it. She's in transition and politeness is not something that's really high up on her list of priorities right now, but it's okay," she whispered in Mimi's ear. Mimi nodded and stood sheepishly next to Angel.

Blair and Kate began to get some of their equipment ready, sensing that the birth was imminent. The contractions were right on top of each other and Maureen continued to ride out each one as she knelt on the floor in front of Joanne. She'd groan and growl through each one as Joanne whispered words of encouragement into her ear. In between, her body would collapse in a pitiful sob in Joanne's lap.

As another contraction began to build Maureen suddenly felt everything within her shift downward and with the shift came an unbelievable urge to bear down. The urge was so strong and came so fast that she wasn't even able to tell anyone before her body started involuntarily pushing. Everyone in the room quickly realized what was happening when Maureen's groans suddenly turned to grunts. Joanne, Collins, Angel, and Mimi looked around nervously, but Kate and Blair didn't seem phased.

Kate got down next to Maureen. It was a stupid question, but she had to ask. "Maur, are you pushing?"

"Uh huh," she grunted, clenching her fists tighter around the edges of Joanne's stretched-out tee shirt.

"Shouldn't you check her to make sure she's completely dilated before she pushes?" Joanne asked, looking back between Blair and Kate anxiously. "I mean, couldn't it cause problems if she pushes before she's at 10 centimeters?"

"Trust me, honey. If the urge hit her that fast and that hard, she's ready to push," Kate promised.

"So she's pushing? Like, this is really happening?" Mimi asked.

"Looks that way!" Kate said smiling.

With that, Mimi jumped up and ran out the door and down the hall. "We've got birth happening here!" she shrieked, bounding into the living room. "She's pushing!"

Mark and Roger weren't real sure how to react. "Umm…..okay!" Roger said uneasily.

"Great," Mark chimed in, giving a thumbs-up.

"I'm gonna get back in there, but I just thought you'd like to know!" Mimi said, turning to go back to the bedroom.

"Just let us know when we have a baby!" Mark called down the hall after her.

**TBC...muahahaha!!!!**

**Am I evil or what? I'll post again SOON!!! I promise!! I just couldn't add anymore to this b/c if was so long already. I can't believe you guys are about to meet the baby!! I've waited for this for so long! I can't wait for you guys to read it! **

**Also, if you have any questions, let me know. Like I said, I'm one of those people who loves to watch A Baby Story on TLC and stuff like that so I've kinda picked up a few things, but some people may have questions so please don't be afraid to ask.**


	34. Chapter 34: A Family

**You guys rock my sock! Reviews are amazing!! Thank you, thank you, thank you!!! You're too good to me!**

**Okay, I don't know if you guys are ready for this. Are you ready for this? 4 months and 34 chapters...are you totally sure you're ready? Cuz I could squeeze a few more chapters in before that baby gets here...**

**Alright, I'm not that cruel! You've waited long enough. Without further ado...**

Chapter 34

"I WANNA GO TO THE HOSPITAL! I WANT DRUGS!!" Maureen roared as she continued to push. She was still kneeling in front of Joanne on the floor. Kate was sitting on the floor behind her, Blair was getting the last few things ready for the birth, and Collins, Angel, and Mimi just stood together in the corner watching everything unfold and trying to stay out of the way.

"Sweetie, you wouldn't even make it to the hospital. The baby is right inside," Kate told her. "Here, give me your hand." She took Maureen's hand and guided it between her legs. "You feel that right there? That's the baby's head!"

A look of awe and terror crossed Maureen's face. "Holy shit!" she gasped. "That's the baby's head?"

"Yep! We're getting close. Just hang in there."

Joanne did her best to try to encourage Maureen. "Baby, I'm so proud of you. You're doing so awesome. I love you so much."

She pushed through a few more contractions before Kate stopped her. "Okay, sweetie, this little one is getting close. If you wanna have this baby on the bed, then this is pretty much your last chance to move, okay. It's now or never."

Getting up and moving the few feet to the bed was the last thing on Maureen's mind, but she knew giving birth sitting on the bed would be easier for everyone, not to mention her knees were killing her so she agreed. Collins came over to help her up onto the bed, grabbing her underneath her arms. Once she was on the bed Kate helped her recline back against some pillows and bend her knees.

When Collins saw that she was in a good position he started to go back over to Mimi and Angel, but Maureen would not let go of his flannel shirt. "Stay with me," she said breathlessly. Without thinking twice he sat on the bed next to her, holding her hand with his right hand and putting his left arm behind her to help support her. Joanne climbed up onto the bed on Maureen's left side and Maureen immediately took her hand. Mimi and Angel stood at the end of the bed in awe of the situation that was unfolding in front of them.

Maureen continued to push and as the baby began to crown she experienced an incredible burning sensation between her legs. It was so intense that she could have sworn she was splitting in two.

"Oh Jesus! It burns!" she sobbed, throwing her head back and digging her finger nails into Collins and Joanne's arms. "I swear she must be bringing luggage!"

"I know, sweetie, but you're so close," said Kate, trying to hold back a laugh about the 'luggage' comment.

"C'mon Maur, you're doing great, babe!" Collins said.

"Oh God, please take me to the hospital! I want the epidural!" Maureen screamed again. She knew there was no way she'd make it to the hospital, but it didn't matter. It was a cry of utter desperation.

"Maureen, you wouldn't even make it to the car! The baby is right here! Just push and it'll all be over in a few minutes."

Pressing the back of her head against the headboard and letting out a loud, gravely growl, she pushed until the contraction was over before collapsing over onto Joanne's chest.

"I just want this to be over. I wanna be done," Maureen cried weakly, tears and sweat streaming down her face.

"I know, baby. You're almost there!" Joanne said, kissing Maureen's sweaty forehead. She could taste the salt from the perspiration on her lips. This would have grossed some people out, but not Joanne. In her eyes, Maureen had never been more beautiful than she was at this very moment.

"Hang in there, Maureen" Kate said, rubbing the Maureen's leg.

Maureen laid still against Joanne trying to catch her breath. "Oh no," she groaned as another contraction started to build.

"C'mon, baby, you're almost there! You can do this. Let's go!" Joanne said, pushing Maureen into a sitting position and pressing her forehead to Maureen's temple.

"C'mon, chica. You're so close! You can do this!" Angel said, gripping Mimi's hand tightly. Mimi stood in stunned silence, tears beginning to cloud her vision.

"Good, Maureen. We're almost there!" Kate said as Maureen began to bear down once more. "Jo, come here," Kate motioned for Joanne to join her at Maureen's feet. Joanne's eyes widened.

"Th-that's okay. I'm doing uh…I'm doing good with the hand holding," she stammered uneasily.

"Jo…_come here_," Kate said again, this time with a tad bit of force. "Come see your baby." Joanne nervously peered around Maureen's leg and was shocked at what she saw.

"Oh my God," she choked back, covering her mouth as tears welled up in her eyes.

"That's your baby," Kate explained as Maureen continued to push.

"Look at all that hair!" Jo cried, looking up and smiling at Mimi and Angel who were watching as well. "Oh baby, you're so close! Keep going! It's right there! Push!" she encouraged, rubbing Maureen's thigh as she continued to bear down.

"Okay Maureen, stop pushing. Blow, blow, blow!" Kate demonstrated the panting technique. Maureen did her best to not push as the baby's head emerged.

"Oh my God! It burns!!" she grunted.

"I know! Almost there! One little tiny push for the ears," Kate spoke calmly. Maureen pushed, and with a throat grinding roar, the baby's head was born. Angel, Mimi, Collins and Joanne were speechless.

"Okay, sweetie. Head is out and Peanut has a sweet little face!" Kate announced as she suctioned the baby's nose and mouth. "One more big push and we're gonna have a baby!"

"I can't!"

"Sweetie, yes you can! You have to! Push!" Kate said firmly.

As the next contraction built, Maureen gathered all the strength she had left, squeezed her eyes shut, and pushed as hard as she could, screaming in a way that could only be described as 'primal' as the shoulders emerged one at a time. Joanne covered her mouth with her hand and stared in awe as the baby was born.

"Maureen, open your eyes," Kate said calmly as she delivered the baby's chest, tummy, and legs. Maureen peeked her eyes open and looked down in shock just as Kate laid the baby directly on her chest. Blair covered the baby with a warm towel and rubbed it gently as it began to make its first gurgling mews.

"Oh my God!...Oh my God!" Maureen stammered as she looked at the wiggling creature in her arms. She couldn't believe it. The little person who had been living within her for 9 long months was now in her arms. "Oh my God, I did it! Holy shit, I actually freakin' did it!" she said, looking up at Joanne and her stunned friends and then back down at her baby. "You're out! You're here! Holy cow, I can't believe you're here! Oh God, and you're beautiful!" she cried stroking the baby's face and head.

Joanne was completely overwhelmed as she snuggled closer to Maureen. She laughed and cried and kissed Maureen's forehead as she stroked her baby's downy head.

"So are you guys gonna tell us what we got?" Kate said, which seemed to somewhat startled both the girls who were in such awe of the petite person in Maureen's arms that they had almost forgotten there were five other people in the room. "We've been waiting nine months to find out if we have a little girl or a little boy. Are you gonna keep us in suspense or what?" In all the excitement of the baby finally being here, Maureen and Joanne had forgotten to look.

With tear-filled eyes, Maureen looked at Joanne. "You look."

Unable to hold back her smile, Joanne gently lifted the blanket and peeked between the baby's legs before covering her face with her hand. "You guys aren't going to believe this," she said, looking over at Angel, Mimi, and Collins, who were standing next to the bed. "She was right!"

Angel's jaw dropped. "Oh, you have GOT to be kidding!!"

Joanne shook her head. "I'm serious as a heart attack," Joanne said, looking up at Maureen. "You were right, baby. IT'S A GIRL! It's Averie" Joanne exclaimed, laughing through her tears of joy and relief and kissing Maureen.

Maureen quickly had a look under the cover as well. "I knew it!" she said, kissing the baby girl on the head. Unhappy about the cold breeze on her bottom, Averie finally began to let out a few robust cries. Maureen and Joanne quickly covered her back up. "Oh I know, sweet girl! That whole 'being born' thing is a bitch, isn't it?" Maureen cooed. Averie let out another tiny wail as if to agree. "Yeah, I know, but it's gonna be okay because me and your momma have waited a very long time for you and we love you so much. And you have aunts and uncles and grandmas and grandpas and friends who love you too."

Angel, Collins, and Mimi were sharing hugs and tears amongst themselves. "Oh my God, you guys, she's precious!" Mimi squealed, moving closer to the bed.

"Hey, someone should go tell Mark and Roger that we have a baby girl," Joanne said.

"No need," came a voice at the door. "We already know." Mark and Roger's heads and Mark's camera lens peeked through the half-open door.

"Mark! Oh my gosh! How long have you been standing there?" Joanne asked.

"Well, I had my eyes shut most of the time, but I think we peeked in somewhere around 'I think she's bringing luggage!'"

Everyone giggled a bit. "Get in here, you two," laughed Collins, wiping his eyes with his sleeve and pulling a slightly peaked, but happy Roger into a bear hug.

Mark rewound his camera and started shooting again. "It's March 1st…..no wait," Mark corrected himself, looking down at his watch. "March 2nd, 1993, 12:31 AM, Eastern Standard Time. Our little family has just gotten a little bit bigger. Maureen, would you like to introduce our new star?"

Maureen giggled slightly. "This is Averie. Averie Colleen Johnson-Jefferson…our daughter," she smiled.

"So, Jo's cutting the cord, correct?" Kate asked, clamping Averie's umbilical cord.

"Yes," Jo sniffled, wiping her eyes and clearing her vision. "Now you promise she can't feel this, right?" she asked, taking the scissors that Blair handed her.

"Right, she won't feel a thing," Kate reassured her. "Promise. Now just cut right between the two clamps." Joanne clipped the cord and handed the scissors back to Blair.

"How about we get this little girl cleaned up and measured and weighed?" Kate asked, scooping up Averie. "And we'll get Mommy cleaned up and the sheets changed too."

Kate and Blair cleaned up the baby and got her measurements as Joanne and Collins helped get Maureen cleaned up and the sheets changed.

"6 pounds, 8 ounces," Blair announced, reading the scale as Joanne helped Maureen back into the clean bed.

"She's so little," Mimi cooed, as she watched Blair and Kate check Averie's reflexes.

"She didn't feel that little," Maureen sighed as she relaxed back onto the bed and Joanne sat down beside.

"Alright, who wants her," Blair asked, scooping up the baby after outfitting her with her first diaper.

"It's Mama's turn," Maureen said, looking up at Joanne. "I got to hold her for nine months."

Blair made her way over to the bed and gently laid Averie in Joanne's trembling arms then covered her with a receiver blanket. "Oh my goodness," she whispered looking down in awe and examining the tiny hand that was now resting on her chest. "Hello, precious girl."

Averie truly was a beautiful little girl. **(a/n: Check my profile to see her!)** Her complexion was a light caramel. Not as dark as Joanne's mocha skin tone, but darker than that of Maureen. She had a full head of dark, shiny hair and Joanne's sweet little nose and cheekbones. There was no denying that even though Maureen had carried and delivered her, Averie was Joanne's daughter.

"Pookie, she looks just like you," Maureen said, resting her chin on Joanne's shoulder and fondling Averie's tiny fingers as they wrapped around her own. Joanne smiled knowing that Maureen was right. "Look how long her fingers are……and those fingernails. Meems, I bet we could paint 'em!"

As Maureen and Joanne continued to study their little girl's precious features her eyelids fluttered and opened, revealing big, beautiful, dark brown eyes. "Hi, little one," Joanne whispered. Avervie calmly gazed up at Joanne, seeming to know exactly who she was. Looking down into the eyes of her daughter was too much for Joanne and she was overwhelmed again. Tears streamed down her face and Maureen wiped them away with her the back of her knuckle.

"Thank you," Maureen sniffled, her breath catching in her throat as she looked over at Maureen.

"For what?" Maureen asked with a content, smug grin.

"For what?? For this," Joanne said, looking down at Averie. "For making me a Mama."

"I didn't do that," Maureen said, shaking her head. "We both did that."

"But you carried her. You kept her safe and warm. And you delivered her."

"But I couldn't have done it without you. You kept me together through this whole thing. She's definitely a team effort."

"You three make an amazingly beautiful family," Collins smiled, as he snuggled Angel in his lap.

"Family," Maureen repeated, stroking the fingers of her new baby girl and looking over at her girlfriend. "I really like the sound of that."

Joanne leaned over and kissed Maureen gently on the lips. "Me too."

**TBC...**

**YAY!!! Averie is here!!!! Was she worth the wait? I hope so! Stay tuned for her first few weeks of life and then I'll figure out where I'm gonnna go from here. If there is enough requests, I might think of writing a sequel...wink wink. We'll see though.**


	35. Chapter 35: Getting To Know Averie

**Guys, I am soo sooo soooooo sorry this has taken so long! I've just had so much on my plate: working, getting registered for school, family junk. It's been nuts and I just either haven't had the time or the desire to write, but here you go!! ****I promise it won't take this long for the next one, even if I have to tie myself to this chair! I hope you enjoy it!!**

**By the way, your reviews for that last chapter were soooo encouraging!!! I'm so glad you like it!**

After helping to clean up, stamping both Momma and Baby with a clean bill of health, and giving Maureen and Averie a quick breastfeeding lesson, Kate and Blair left to give everyone the opportunity to rest and get acquainted with Baby Averie. Maureen dozed while the baby was passed around. Collins sat in the chair with Angel and Mimi perched on each armrest and the baby girl cradled in his lap.

"Little girl, we are going to spoil you rotten," Collins cooed, caressing Averie's chubby cheek with his finger.

"Jo, it's insane how much she looks like you," Angel commented to Joanne who was sprawled out next to Maureen who was resting against her chest. "And somehow, she ended up with Mo's jaw line. (a/n: everyone knows what I'm talking about) I'm still trying to figure out how that happened."

"She might just be the most precious thing I've ever seen," said Mimi, stroking Averie's downy black hair.

"Where'd Mark and Roger run off to?" Collins asked. "I haven't seen them since they helped Kate and Blair carry the equipment out."

"They're probably getting something to eat. Mark had said that they hadn't really eaten dinner and I told him there were some Pizza Rolls in the freezer if he and Rog wanted some," Joanne answered.

Just then the baby started to fuss. "Hey now, Little Bit, there's no need for that," Collins said, scooping the baby girl off his lap and bouncing her gently in his arms.

The sound of the unhappy baby made the usually heavy sleeping Maureen wake with a start. "Whasamatter?" she asked sleepily, rubbing her eyes.

"I bet she's hungry," Joanne said, sliding off the bed and taking the fussy baby from Collins. Joanne stood looking at Maureen for a moment, waiting. Maureen stared back, clueless.

"What?" Maureen asked. Joanne raised her eyebrows as she looked down at Maureen's chest and cleared her throat, but Maureen was still clueless. "What?!"

"What do you mean 'what'? I don't think anyone else is exactly lactating right now."

"Oh! Right!!" Maureen exclaimed as she remembered what part she played in the feeding process and began unbuttoning her night shirt. Joanne rolled her eyes as she handed Averie to Maureen. "I'm sorry! This is all new to me. It's going to take some getting used to."

After a few moments and a few re-adjustments, Averie calmed down and began to nurse.

"Just like her Mama," Collins said, eyeing Maureen. "She loves breasts!"

Maureen made a sarcastic face at him, pretending to laugh. "You're so funny."

"Well, he does have a point," Joanne shrugged. Angel and Mimi couldn't deny the statement either.

"Oh, isn't this great?! Everyone's ganging up on me. I was in labor for fifteen hours and gave birth not two hours ago and now I have a person sucking on me so a little compassion would be much appreciated, thank you so kindly!"

"I'm sorry, Bear," Joanne said almost too sweetly, tucking a pillow under the baby so Maureen's arm wouldn't get tired. "This is so cool," she said after a few minutes of watching.

"Does it hurt?" asked Mimi, getting up from the arm of the chair, walking around the bed, and climbing up next to Maureen.

"Umm….right now it's pretty much just uncomfortable."

"Uncomfortable….yeah, but this coming from a woman who just gave birth in her bedroom without so much as a Tylenol," said Mimi, rolling her eyes. "I seriously don't know how you did that, Reen. I really don't," she chuckled.

"I don't really know how I did it either. I mean, I'm not going to lie. It was the most painful, exhausting, scary thing I've ever experience, but when Kate laid her on my chest it was like none of it mattered. All the pain was gone," Maureen smiled looking down at her nursing daughter. "But honestly, I couldn't have done it without you guys."

"I don't know if I could ever do that," Mimi said. "Even with all the support in the world."

"Yeah, you could. A wise girl once told me we can do anything we set our minds to," Maureen said, shooting Joanne a smile. "You're a lot stronger than you give yourself credit for, Meems."

Mimi smiled sheepishly. "Thanks."

Just then Mark popped in, fiddling with his camera as usual. "Hey Uncle Mark, we were starting to worry about you," Maureen giggled.

"Sorry, my scrawny body craved sustenance," he said winding his camera and looking up at Maureen. "And apparently I'm not the only one," he added, noticing that Maureen was feeding Averie. "I can leave if you want. Give you some privacy."

"Since when have I ever been shy? It doesn't bother me if it doesn't bother you. Come on in." Mark obliged and sat down on the nook by the bay window.

"So what, did you leave Roger to polish off the bag of Pizza Rolls or what?" asked Collins, wrapping his arms around Angel's waist and pulling him (he's not in drag so I'll refer to Angel as a "him") onto his lap.

"No, he's outside smoking. He'll be in in a minute," he answered, still fiddling with his camera. "So how you feeling, Miss Mom?"

"Well, I'm a little sore, a lot tired, and I'm pretty sure I might have just given birth to a Hoover vacuum cleaner , but other than that I couldn't be better," Maureen smiled back at him.

"Yeah, I'm exhausted and I didn't push another human being out of my body, so I can only imagine how you're feeling," Mark said, finally finished with the adjustments on his camera. "Do you mind if I shoot a little?"

"Be my guest," Maureen shrugged.

Mark filmed for a few minutes, even capturing Averie's first burp before Roger finally strolled in.

"There's Uncle Roger," Collins said. "We were starting to wonder where you were."

"Just having a smoke-OH JEEZ!" Roger said, looking over at Maureen. "Are you doing what I think you're doing?"

"Uhh….yeah. I mean, I'm feeding the baby, if that's what you mean?"

"Well…uh….do you like…want me to turn around or leave or something?" Roger asked, averting his eyes.

"Rog, c'mon. Are you serious? It's not like you've never seen my boobs before. My God, we lived together for two years. We streaked together and played strip poker on a regular basis for Pete's sake! These things should be nothing new."

"Yeah, but that was before they were a form of nourishment," he said, staring at the ceiling.

"Rog, if it makes you uncomfortable, you can leave. You won't offend me or nothing, but it doesn't bother me that you're here," Maureen said. "I mean, I just flashed my crotch to 6 people, not including you and Mark. What little modesty I had before this experience has taken a nosedive."

After a hesitant moment, Roger shrugged and took a seat next to Mark, still keeping his gaze on the ceiling or down at the floor.

A few minutes later, Averie decided she was full and after a quick burp and a little spit up on Joanne, fell back asleep.

"Alright, as I look around the room and I see only two people who have yet to hold my child, so who's up?" Maureen said, eyeing Mark and Roger by the window.

"I think Roger needs to go," said Mimi, smiling.

"Yeah, c'mon Uncle Roger," chuckled Collins as he reached over and slapped Roger on the thigh.

"Oh no," Roger retorted. "Not tonight. Maybe tomorrow."

"C'mon Rog," everyone chimed.

"Guys, I haven't held a baby in years," whined Roger. "I don't even really know how." He got up from his spot by the window and tried to make his way to the door for a quick escape, but Joanne cut him off, Averie in hand.

"Honey, as long as you don't hold her by her ankles she'll be fine," she said, laying the infant into his reluctant arms.

"But…but…but…what if I break her?" Roger asked, obviously panicked, his eyes as big as silver dollars.

"Rog, she lived in me for nine months and I didn't break her," Maureen chuckled. "How much damage could you possibly do in five minutes?"

"Just support her head in the crook of your arm……there ya go," Joanne said, coaxing Roger as she adjusted Averie in his arms. "And support her bottom with this hand." She took his right hand and placed it under the baby girl's tiny butt before removing her hands. Roger stood terrified and in awe of the little girl in his trembling arms.

"Wow……she's so light; so little. Her butt fits in the palm of my hand," he said in amazement as he backed up and lowered himself into the chair in the corner.

"See, it's not so bad," said Collins. "Just like holding a football."

"So what cha think?" asked Mimi sliding off the bed and perching herself on the arm of the chair next to Roger.

"It's okay," he said, still having a hard time relaxing.

"Do you think it's something you could get used to?" she said, running her fingers through his blonde hair.

"Eh….maybe…..someday," he said shrugging and relaxing a little as he became more comfortable.

Mimi bit her lip. "Well, what if I told you you didn't have a choice?"

Roger slowly turned his gaze up toward Mimi. When his stare met hers, she simply smiled. She could see the gears in his head turning a million miles an hour while everyone else in the room looked around at one another confused, wondering if Mimi was saying what they thought she was saying.

"Say wha?" Roger asked, astounded.

Mimi only smiled. "I don't think 'someday' is going to be an option, sweetie."

"What are you saying?" he asked, finally able to compose a sentence.

"I'm saying that I hope this is something you can get used to because in about seven months……." she grinned, "we're going to have one of these. You're going to be a daddy!"

**TBC...**

**So who saw that coming? Admit it!!! You didn't have a clue!!!! Muuaaaahaaahaaaa!!!!!**


	36. Chapter 36: Welcome to Parenthood

**I'm so sorry guys! I hope you didn't think I fell off the face of the Earth b/c I didn't. I've just been busy and have really been lacking the drive to write, but I knew you guys were probably waiting for this so I forced myself to finish this chapter. Hopefully I'll have some more time to write and will get some great inspiration. **

**Anywho, thank you so much for all the wonderful reviews. They still make me immensely happy and I'm so thankful that you all love my story so much. Hope you find this chapter as enjoyable as all the previous ones!**

Chapter 36

"I'm gonna what?" Roger stammered, turning a pasty shade of green.

"Wait!" said Joanne, darting for the baby still in Roger's arms. "Let me grab the baby before he drops her from shock!"

"So you're…umm…..uhhh….."

"I…uh…believe the word you're searching for, Rog, is "pregnant," chimed Collins from across the room.

Roger stared at his knees as he ran his fingers through his hair trying desperately to keep his heart from pounding out of his chest.

"How……how did this happen?" he asked Mimi after a long moment.

"I've got a pretty good guess," said Maureen, still in shock herself over Mimi's news.

Roger ignored Maureen's dig. "Meems, we….we were always so careful."

"Yeah…well…oops," she shrugged.

"Oops," Roger sighed heavily, resting his forehead in his hands.

"Baby, are you okay?" Mimi asked, crouching down in front of him. "I mean, you're not mad are you?"

"No, babe. I'm uh…I'm not mad. This is just a lot to take in. I mean….you're…I'm...I mean…..wow….."

"Yeah, I know, but it's all going to be alright," said Mimi putting her hands on each of his shoulders.

"But we're not ready to be parents. We're barely keeping our heads above water. We live in a crappy, drafty, dirty loft that we can barely make the rent on as it is. You'll have to quit your job at the Cat Scratch because I have a feeling pregnant S&M dancers aren't really in high demand."

"Actually," Maureen interrupted as Joanne handed her the baby, "You'd be surprised what some people are into these days." Joanne glared at Maureen in an attempt to shut her up.

Roger simply rolled his eyes and continued. "Plus, I'm hardly going to be home these next couple of months with the band being in the studio and still playing gigs and all. And we'll hopefully be going on tour when the album is finished. Not to mention the fact that we're both HIV positive and-"

"Baby, stop!" Mimi said strongly, placing her hands on Roger's cheeks. "It's okay. It's going to be okay. I know you're scared. Hell, I'm scared to death, but everything's going to be fine. I don't think this would have happened if it wasn't supposed to. Like you said, we've always been so careful, yet here we are so I figure this happened for a reason. Maybe this is the universe's way of telling us that we are ready," she continued, brushing his hair out of his face. "We'll figure this out. I'll find a job….I dunno…somewhere and you'll do great with the band and the album and everything will work out."

Roger sat for a long moment looking into Mimi's intense brown eyes before looking down at the floor then back up at Mimi. "So you're sure?"

Mimi grinned widely. "Tried every test in the store and got a blood test at the health department just to be sure."

With a deep breath Roger smiled and pulled Mimi into his lap and embraced her tightly.

The tension in the room diminished as Roger and Mimi embraced and the friends smiled at one another.

"So, I'm going to be a daddy," Roger said, sniffling slightly as he pulled away from the embrace and looked around at his friends.

"Congratulations!" said Collins getting up from his chair and wrapping his arms around both Roger and Mimi. Angel, Mark, and Joanne followed suit, joining the hug.

"Okay, I'm insanely happy for you guys, but I just gave birth so you're coming to me!" Maureen said from the bed as she held out her arms to hug Roger and Mimi with Averie resting beside her on the bed.

Mimi and Roger made their way to the bed to hug Maureen. "I never thought I'd see the day when Roger would be forced to grow up," she said, hugging Roger and pecking him on the cheek.

"Well, I thought the same thing about you and look at you now," he smiled.

Maureen then turned to Mimi smiling and took her in her arms. "So our babies are going to grow up together. And if you have a girl you can have all of Averie's hand-me-downs."

"Oh, you know we won't get off that easy. It'll be a boy for sure," laughed Mimi.

"'Aww, but then they can date. That is, assuming they're both straight."

"Oh no. No no no no no," said Joanne lifting Averie off the bed. "She's never dating. Anyone! Gay, straight, or otherwise. Ever! Period. End of story." Everyone laughed.

"Alright guys, I don't know about you, but I'm exhausted. I've had a hard day," sighed Maureen, sliding down against her pillow.

"That's an understatement, chica," chuckled Angel. "You definitely need your rest. I don't even know how you're still awake."

"I'm definitely hanging by a thread," she giggled sleepily.

"C'mon, guys," said Joanne kissing Averie and laying her in the bassinet beside Maureen. "I'll get you some pillows and blankets and you can crash in the guest room or the living room."

"Well then, I guess we'll see you two beautiful girls in the morning," said Collins kissing Maureen's forehead and stroking Averie's dark, downy hair. The rest of the crew blew kisses to Maureen as Joanne retrieved some bed clothes from the hall closet.

After a few minutes of getting everyone settled in, Joanne returned to the bedroom to find Maureen snuggled under the covers almost asleep. She walked around to Maureen's side of the bed and perched herself on the edge as she stared down into the bassinet at her sleeping baby girl.

Sensing Joanne's presence, Maureen sleepily opened her eyes. "What are you doing, Pook?"

"Looking at the two most beautiful girls in the world. Thinking about how lucky I am. Trying to take everything in. I mean, she's here. We've been waiting for her for so long and now she's finally here."

Maureen propped herself up on her elbow and looked into the bassinet as well. "Yeah. I think we did pretty good. What do you think?"

"I think we'll definitely hang onto her for a little while," Joanne smiled, kissing Averie's forehead. "I love you, Sweet Girl." She then climbed over Maureen onto her side of the bed and snuggled in close.

"So……Roger and Mimi are going to have a baby," Maureen said as she felt herself start to drift off to sleep in Joanne's arms. "Who would have ever thunk it?"

"I certainly never would have, but it appears that way. You know, I think I'm going to see if I can get Mimi on at the office as a secretary. I think I could get them to pay for her to take some classes so she could learn the basics. It would be good, steady money for her and Roger and she could get maternity leave when the baby is born. You think she'd be up for it?"

"Yeah. I really think so. You really think you could pull it off?"

"Well, we've lost a few girls over the past few weeks and if I give her a recommendation I think they'd definitely be willing to see what she could do and with Mimi's work ethic I think she'd really do well."

"Baby, that would be amazing! I've wanted her out of that damn strip joint for a long time now. This is the perfect opportunity to get out."

"Yeah, I thought so too."

Both girls lay still for a few minutes with only the sound of their slowing breathing breaking the stillness.

"Honey?" Joanne whispered into Maureen's ear.

"Hmm?"

"I love you."

"I luh…you….too," Maureen slurred sleepily. Within moments, both girls had drifted off to sleep.

Suddenly the calm silence of the room was broken by Averie's gurgling, newborn fussing that quickly turned to a full blown cry.

"Oh you have got to be kidding me," Maureen groaned.

Joanne groggily sat back up and rubbed her eyes. "Welcome to parenthood, Honey Bear."

**TBC...**


End file.
